Question about Mushrooms

[jordee]

Might be a daft question, But I have two large conifer trees and was wondering if it is possible to impregnate them with Mushrooms spawn, without killing them?

Surely this is the ultimate in Green living?

I know that Mushrooms generally exhaust their host, but is this possible?

[jordee]

[dtw]

Why not cut off a branch and use that.

Don't forget to treat the 'wound' with whatever you treat it with (I'm not a tree expert  ;D)

[star]

I was walking in the woods last year and found a birch branch with oyster 'shrooms growing on it. I took the branch home and have had a pretty fair crop of them this year too.

Now I need to get more birch to lay beside to oyster one to hopefully produce more in the future.

What spawn were you thinking of for your conifers? I dont know a lot about mushrooms except they are host specific. Also possibly use a branch as dtw says, instead of the live tree.

[Baccy Man]

There are only 4 edible mushrooms I know of that will grow on conifers grifola frondosa, hericium abietis, hericium erinaceus, and pleurotus ostreatus. Hericium abietis is the easiest to start although the spawn can be difficult to find & will grow on living conifers, hericium erinaceus will grow on living conifers but does much better on dead wood. The other 2 will only grow on dead wood & are both difficult to start if using conifer wood as a growing medium.

[Garjan]

The idea of growing my own mushrooms is tempting me for some time now. There are some nice pieces of tree lying in the back of my garden, waiting to be used.

The reason for not growing them, is that I am afraid that the plugs will become infected with something or the other and that I will grow poisonous mushrooms instead. Without me being able to recognise this.

Is this at all possible or am I just a tad hysterical?

[Baccy Man]

It is best to use freshly cut wood rather than logs that have been sitting around for a while.

Each log will usually only become colonised by 1 type of mushroom. There is a possiblity that the log may be colonised by wild fungi rather than whatever you try to innoculate it with it depends which spawn can get established first. You will know what you innoculated the log with & there will be plenty of photos to show what those mushrooms look like on the internet if the mushrooms that grow look different then don't eat them or take a photo & ask if anyone can identify them for you, it is very unlikely they would be something posonous but some mushrooms just don't taste that nice so it is best to know what they are before eating them.

[Garjan]

Thanks for you reply Baccy Man.
Will try to grow some this year, after finding new logs.
I don't suppose that I can sterilise those in a normal microwave oven  ;D!

[Baccy Man]

Aged deadwood is not recommended for growing mushrooms as it has a poor nutrient base for supporting mushroom growth. Logs or stumps with fine cracks (called "checks") running through them are more quickly colonized with mushroom mycelium than those without.

When I said freshly cut it was probably a bit misleading what I actually mean is anywhere between 2 weeks & 3 months old.
Freshly cut logs less than 2 weeks old should not be immediately inoculated because trees naturally produce anti-fungal compounds, which degrade in two to three weeks from cutting.
After about 3 months the nutrient levels start to fall rapidly making it harder for the mycelium to get established.
Logs cut while the tree is dormant are always better as they have higher nutrient levels to begin with. The perfect time to innoculate them is 3-6 weeks after cutting.

http://www.annforfungi.co.uk Is one of the best sources I have found for buying spawn.

[Riffster]

Baccy Man,  have you tried this method for field mushrooms listed on http://www.annforfungi.co.uk/shop/mushroom-patches/field-mushrooms/prod_28.html
- The idea of setting aside 1m square of shady moist lawn is growing on me

[Baccy Man]

Yes that is one of the easiest ways to grow mushrooms just make sure you use agaricus campestris spawn as is sold on that site rather than agaricus bisporus which is more commonly available. Both produce very similar mushrooms but A.Bisporus needs to be grown in the dark for best results.
You will need some manure (horse or poultry works best) to make up the mushroom compost.
King stropharia & shaggy inkcap spawn are also available from that site both are easy to grow through woodchip mulch on your borders.