Pearl, Summer White Oyster Mushroom – Pleurotus Ostreatus Gourmet Mushroom Culture

Pearl, Summer White Oyster Mushroom gourmet Mushroom Culture

Called both White or Pearl Oyster. Pearl Oyster is one of the most popular mushrooms to grow at home. Its slight anise flavor pairs well with seafood and is delicious on its own lightly sauteed with olive oil and finished with a squeeze of lemon juice. Heavy fruiter good for most hardwood types.

These seemingly innocent small pieces of wood are carrying a secret. They have been inoculated with pure mushroom mycelium and when inserted into a log or stump can provide a delicious surprise. Consider these plugs the seed of mushroom and turn your yard into a forager’s delight. For plug health, keep refrigerated until ready to use.  (5 Oz Package, contains 100 plugs)

Below are the instructions for selecting and preparing logs to grow mushrooms. You should use healthy living trees that are free of any rot. Logs should be cut from the trees zero to two months after they were felled. The bark should be undamaged and logs should be kept clean and off the ground by stacking them on a crate or scraps of wood.

Ideal wood types for logs are Oak, Maple, Beech, Birch, Alder, Elm, Poplar, Cottonwood, Ash, Willow, Box Elder, Hackberry, or Mulberry. Do not use Cedar, Redwood, Cypress, Fruit Trees, or Conifers for mushroom logs.

Logs should be soaked for 12-24 hours after plugging with spawn. If the logs are less than ten days old, soaking is not necessary. Drill holes starting two inches from the end of the log and spacing six to eight inches apart. Make the rows of holes three to four inches apart along the girth of each log. For example, a four inch diameter log will have three rows of holes in a line, with each hole in the line six inches apart. Use a 5/16 inch bit for plug spawn and drill the holes 1 1/4 inch deep. After plugging, wax over all the holes drilled with melted bees or soy wax immediately. Also wax over the ends of the logs, anywhere the bark was nicked or damaged, and anywhere that branches were cut off of the log.

Logs should then be stacked criss-cross in full shade during the colonization period, preferably off the ground (a pallet works well for this). The logs should be kept in full shade in a place with access to water. Keep the logs outside in the elements and do not cover them. It is not necessary to soak the logs during the colonization period, unless it is exceedingly dry (if you do not receive rain at least once every two weeks, water your logs). If necessary, a deep soaking is best, meaning 12-24 hours of rain, sprinkler, soaker hose or roll them into a stream, pond, kiddie pool, barrel, bath tub, watering trough, etc. Note: The chlorine in municipal water will not hurt the logs. Make sure the bark dries out between soakings. Remember, fewer deeper soakings are best.

The spawn run takes anywhere from four months to two years, depending on the mushroom and wood species. For example, Oyster on poplar takes four to six months, while Shiitake on White oak takes at least 12 months. Logs should be kept hydrated throughout the spawn run. Look for the ends of the logs to turn white with mycelium after a soaking rain as a sign that the spawn run is nearly complete. At this point, you can force your logs to fruit by soaking them for 24 hours. If the weather conditions are right for the species that you are cultivating, they will fruit naturally on their own. If you continuously force fruit your logs, they will not last as long.

The logs will get lighter in weight over time as the fungus eats the lignin and cellulose and converts it into mushrooms. Eventually, they will fall apart and be recycled into the earth. A six inch white oak log inoculated with shiitake will produce for five to six years. You can expect roughly a year of production per inch of diameter of log for oak, less for softer hardwoods like poplar.

Special notes: Providing shade is important. North side of the house (but not under the eaves, as it needs the rain) is excellent. A simple piece of 80 percent shade cloth draped over the logs works well. Or under the cover of bushes, evergreen trees, etc.