It will be about how to grow oyster mushrooms at home, about all stages of this process and about tasty, healthy, unpretentious mushrooms. After all, we all eat mushrooms with pleasure, we love to roam the forest, collecting them. But if there are suitable conditions, interest and a great desire, then it is quite possible to grow mushrooms yourself. It is worth noting the amazing adaptability of oyster mushrooms: they can grow on stumps, on tyrsa (sawdust), even on paper. They do not need soil, they are characterized by fast fruiting - 1-1.5 months.
Room selection and substrate preparation
To grow oyster mushrooms, it is necessary to equip a non-residential place in advance. For these purposes, basements, garages (in which there are no cars), cellars, sheds or rooms specially equipped for these purposes are excellent. Before starting any preparatory work, it is necessary to disinfect the place where we will grow mushrooms.
A solution of lime (4%) will do this well. Floor, walls, ceiling - all available surfaces must be thoroughly disinfected, and then close the room for a couple of days. After the specified time has elapsed, you need to open the wide open doors and thoroughly ventilate this place until the smell of the limestone disappears completely.
The technology of growing at home implies the choice of the most suitable material for these purposes. The substrate creates optimal conditions for growth: it can be wood chips, corn stalks, husks from buckwheat or sunflower, stalks of cereal crops. Large fragments of the substrate on which we will grow oyster mushrooms should be finely chopped.
Any material you choose needs processing - pasteurization:
- Fill the substrate with warm water, not hot +23 .. + 25 ° C, the exposure time is 20-30 minutes. At the same time, stir the mixture in a container, as if washing it from pollution.
- We drain dirty water, wring out the material and re-fill it with hot water (+80 .. + 90 ° C) and press on top with a heavy object (under oppression). We leave the substrate like this for 6-7 hours, after which we drain the water and finally squeeze it.
- To increase the productivity of the material and subsequent fruiting, it is necessary to saturate the substrate with active elements. Superphosphate, gypsum, limestone and urea are taken in a proportion of 0.5%: 2%: 2%: 0.5%.
- During the “fertilizing” of the substrate with additives, its moisture content should be approximately 70% - this will allow the chemical elements to linger inside the mixture and not leak out with water.
After the room is prepared and disinfected, and the substrate is pasteurized, the turn of laying the mycelium in the mixture follows. Mycelium can be purchased at the mycological laboratory. Among the wide selection of mushrooms of commercial varieties, you can choose a product of the best quality. Specialized online stores are also at your service.
Pre-calculate the volume - for sowing a 10-kilogram block you will need 200-250 g of mycelium (if it is of foreign origin) or 100 g more if the raw materials are domestic.
How to grow oyster mushrooms at home step by step
Mycelium is added to the substrate at the rate of 300-500 g per 10 kg of the mixture. In this case, it is necessary to ensure that the temperature of the material at the time of the addition of mycelium does not exceed + 30 ° C (so as not to ruin the raw material).
The next step is the preparation of bags for laying the mixture and oyster mushroom mycelium. For these purposes it is very convenient to use dense plastic bags and bags. The sizes 40 × 60 cm and 50 × 100 cm are the most optimal. We lay out the resulting composition in bags and carefully twist them, while air should not remain inside.
We make holes in the blocks with a knife. The incisions should be located arbitrarily - at a distance of 10-15 cm from one another. After the manipulations, the bags are stacked on each other (2-4 pieces each) or hung on special hooks pre-mounted in the ceiling or walls. There should be a distance between the bags to ensure comfortable air circulation.
It is also very convenient to use special wooden stakes on a stable basis - blocks with a substrate are simply strung on them several pieces.
Growing oyster mushrooms in bags provides for maintaining a certain temperature and light conditions. Thus, for full germination, mushrooms require a temperature level of about +18 .. + 24 ° C along with high humidity (90-95%).
Sometimes, for additional humidification, buckets of water are placed between the rows of bags, and the necessary air exchange is supported by fans. Ventilation is important in this case - the excess emission of carbon dioxide inhibits the growth of mushrooms. Light is not needed during the incubation period. Make sure that flies do not enter the room at all stages of growth and fruiting.
Growing oyster mushrooms at home includes an incubation period of approximately 14-17 days.
In the first days, the temperature inside the blocks rises, make sure that it does not exceed the level of + 30 ° C. If the temperature is about to reach a critical point, direct the running fan toward the bags. As already mentioned above, such an indicator (fever) is detrimental to the mycelium. At the end of the incubation period, the blocks are covered with white coating - the mycelium begins to sprout.
Growing at this stage involves maintaining certain indoor conditions:
- humidity - not less than 80%, and preferably up to 90-95%;
- air temperature at the level of +12 .. + 17 ° С;
- the required 8-hour lighting - 100-170 lux (like on a cloudy day), ordinary daytime lamps are suitable;
- frequent airing.
Humidity can be maintained by spraying the walls and floor with a spray gun, but water should not get on the blocks. This fruiting period lasts about 2 weeks; at the end of the mushroom cap, oyster mushrooms become quite large.
Harvest time is coming. In this case, you do not need to cut the mycelium with a knife, but carefully twist them out of the bag with the substrate. After the first harvest, the room should be well ventilated and a second round of fruiting expected.
The first harvest is the largest, the second is slightly smaller, the third is smaller than the second - that is, yield waves follow each other in decreasing order.
The rest period between the “waves” is 8-10 days, and the “waves” themselves can be 4 or even 6.
The substrate, which has already served its time, becomes an excellent fertilizer for summer cottages.
How to grow oyster mushrooms on stumps
An excellent option for owners of cottages is the method of growing oyster mushrooms on stumps - this method does not require excessive effort. For these purposes, it is better to choose freshly cut hemp, but you can also pre-harvested. They need to be placed in shaded places where there is no access to sunlight, for example, under the spreading crowns of trees or under vineyards.
Stumps need to be soaked in water and kept for about 3-4 days, older specimens - a week. Then using a drill (20-25 mm) you need to drill 8-10 holes 7-10 cm deep. These depressions are then filled with mycelium, the top is smeared with clay or clogged with moss.
Stumps should be constantly wet, for this they can be covered with cling film and placed in the basement for a month and a half. When the stumps are overgrown with mycelium (looking something like a white film) they can be carried out into the air, placed in shady places.
Studying the possibilities and options of ways to grow oyster mushroom at home, it should be recognized that this method does not require excessive effort, ideal for owners of summer cottages.
Important information - a prerequisite is the use of respirators and protective masks when working with mycelium, as well as during fruiting! When entering the respiratory tract, fungal spores can seriously damage your health.
In this matter, you will need aspiration and patience. Mushroom farming is a truly fascinating and productive activity. The topic of how to grow oyster mushrooms at home, is finding more and more fans among summer residents and enthusiastic gardeners. In addition to the presence on the dining table of this delicious and rich in useful elements product, it is an interesting and profitable business. Try it and you grow mushrooms at home - a rich harvest for six months will undoubtedly please you.
Video about harvesting oyster mushrooms on stumps: