Grow Mushrooms in a Laundry Basket

[velacreations]

Mushrooms often get overlooked in the grand scheme of gardening, just because they're not plants.

However, they are extremely beneficial to your garden's soil, are highly nutritious, and make a tasty addition to almost any meal. While it's true that some species can be a little tricky to grow, but once you learn a few basic requirements, it is feasible to grow all the mushrooms you can eat.

Each type of mushroom has specific "ideal" requirements for temperature, humidity, light, and nutrition. Some grow in soil, others on compost piles, logs, trees - the list is endless. However, for the beginner, we recommend oyster mushrooms. Get your feet wet with this most forgiving mushroom and you'll definitely want to advance into the realm of others like ****ake, Paddy Straw, Garden Giant, and more.

Growing oyster mushrooms in a laundry basket is easy, cheap and it's a great project to do with kids. They'll enjoy watching the quick growth of the fruiting bodies as well as the rewards of eating them after harvest.

For detailed instructions, please visit:
http://velacreations.com/food/mushrooms/edible/item/173-oysters-laundry-basket.html

More photos:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/velacreations/sets/72157624463908734/

 

[rhoda_bruce]

This project has been on my to-do list for years. I've never really known exactly where I would do it though. But after reading this, I have a new inspiration......my deceased FIL's shed. Its dark in there and now that DH and I jacked up our house, we pretty much don't even need a shed anyway. Maybe I can have a few trays of some kind of correct planting medium for mushrooms. The only wild harvesting I've ever done is with a fungi that I don't even know the name of, but it grows on our fallen willows in the woods. We harvest those, normally after a thick fog. It would be cool to have my own constant supply.

 

[velacreations]

These mushrooms like light, not dark. The growing medium is just straw, very easy to do.

 

[Marianne]

Wowser! those look terrific!

I read about the laundry basket way a while back. I'd love to give it a try. DH asked what I planned on doing with them - and had that look on his face.

He can handle two little bits of mushroom on a pizza, that's about it.

 

[mrscoyote]

I can't wait to try this! we love mushrooms.

 

[Arica]

Where did you get the spawn

 

[velacreations]

you can get spawn from a variety of places, including cloning from a store-bought mushroom (look at my instructions for cloning to cardboard)

 

[sleuth]

Any way to do this for growing morels year round?

 

[velacreations]

Any way to do this for growing morels year round?

no, morels are super hard/almost impossible

 

[Britesea]

probably why they're so bloody expensive