King Oyster Mushroom Mycelium, 10 g

King Oyster Mushroom (Pleurotus eryngii)

Arguably the most delicious mushroom among oyster mushrooms, as its name suggests. It is a meaty, dense mushroom that is easy to cultivate and grows well on hardwoods.

Growing Instructions

Growing mushrooms on wood.

Oyster mushrooms are grown on logs in greenhouses or basements, or in shady areas on a home garden plot. Freshly cut trunks of aspen, poplar, or oak are sawn into logs 30–40 cm long and 15–25 cm in diameter. Holes 4–5 cm deep and 2 cm in diameter are drilled into the prepared logs, or notches are made across the entire surface, or cuts are made with an axe. A small amount of mycelium is placed into these holes, which are then covered with pieces of bark, wood chips, sawdust, or moss to prevent the mycelium from falling out. The relative humidity in the room should be 90%. If the humidity is lower, water can be sprayed. After 2–3 months, the mushroom mycelium will have permeated all the logs. Subsequently, the logs can be taken out of the room and each log buried 10–15 cm deep in a shaded spot where direct sunlight does not reach. Alternatively, they can be planted directly in the garden at any time of year, especially in winter. The mycelium is not affected by frost. During this period, the logs must be watered. Mushrooms planted on wood grow for 5–6 years.

Usage rate:  one package of mycelium is sufficient for 50 kg of wood.

Growing mushrooms on plant residues

Straw or sunflower husks are used as the substrate. The straw and husks must be of good quality, with no signs of rot or mold. Before processing, it is advisable to chop the straw into 3–7 cm pieces. Chopping makes the straw more compact and more accessible to the mycelium’s enzymes.  For home use, simple pasteurization methods can be used, such as boiling water. The substrate is poured over with water at a temperature of 80–90 °C and left to stand for 3–4 hours for husks or 7–8 hours for straw. Then the water is drained, and the substrate must cool to a temperature of 20–30 °C. Before inoculating the mycelium, determine the substrate’s moisture content: if you squeeze the substrate in your hand, droplets of water should appear between your fingers, which corresponds to the optimal substrate moisture content—70%. Then mix the substrate with the mycelium. Place the prepared compost in a transparent plastic bag. Tie it closed. To allow for air exchange, make several 3–5 cm cuts across the entire surface of the bag. The mushroom block is now ready.

Fruiting.  Mycelium germination lasts 15–18 days at a temperature of 14–28 °C.  During fruiting, natural and active ventilation is used. Substrate blocks should be illuminated only during fruiting; in open areas and rooms with windows, a day-night cycle is considered normal. In areas where fruiting bodies have begun to form, carefully make incisions in the film. Fruiting occurs in waves 2–3 weeks apart, with 5–7 days between waves. The first three waves yield the highest harvest. Yield is 35–40% of the substrate weight.

Application rate: 2% mycelium of the total mass of the moistened, steamed substrate.