The oyster mushroom often grows with many fruiting bodies on top of each other in a shell shape. It is one of the most popular cultivated mushrooms and is often sold commercially under the names veal mushroom, oyster mushroom or pleurotus. In culture, the oyster mushroom is able to use various substrates - for example straw, paper, coffee grounds, hardwood and others.
Oyster mushrooms feel really good on wood
Oyster mushroom cultivation for beginners
If you are trying your hand at mushroom growing for the first time, a mini plantation on an already inoculated log or sawdust block is a good way to start. There is no substrate preparation as the spawn is already established in the wood and you can focus on maintaining the manufacturer's recommended watering, aeration and humidity levels. Inoculated logs have a very high success rate and are colonized for up to five years.
Growing oyster mushrooms on wood - instructions
However, such finish sets are quite expensive - depending on the provider, you have to calculate between 25 and 50 EUR. Of course, it will be cheaper if you inoculate freshly felled wood yourself. The mushroom spawn required for this is commercially available for considerably less money. However, it is important to use really freshly felled wood, if it is stored for longer than two to three months, it is often already colonized with competing fungi and other microorganisms. In nature, oyster mushrooms are mainly found on hardwoods such as copper beech and poplar, but they also thrive on spruce wood. The round trunks should have a maximum diameter of 30 centimeters and be up to 100 centimeters long.
Inoculate tree trunks and cultivate oyster mushrooms
The best way to inoculate the tree trunks is as follows:
- Beat the logs fresh or store them only for a short time.
- Only use untreated wood - no wooden boards or similar from the hardware store!
- Make diagonal cuts in the logs against the direction of the grain, for example with a chainsaw or hand saw.
- These should reach about half or two-thirds of the way down the trunk.
- Make such a cut every 30 centimeters.
- Fill each cut with mushroom spawn.
- Seal the filled sections with beeswax, clay or tape.
- This protects the mushroom spawn from vermin etc.
- Keep the stem with the mushroom spawn evenly moist.
- The trunk should be stored in a cool, dark place.
- Temperatures between 10 and a maximum of 25 °C are ideal.
Be sure to keep your hands and tools clean and sterile at all times to prevent bacteria or other microorganisms that could compete with the fungal spawn getting into the wood.
tips
Oyster mushrooms also grow very well on nutrient-rich coffee grounds.