LOG IN TO MUSHROOMS

If you fancy having a go at growing mushrooms, get yourself a log, says Wendy Pillar, and ensure a steady supply of tasty fungi for years to come

A great way to grow mushrooms outdoors is on logs. If you take care in starting them off, they can produce mushrooms periodically for up to 10 years. There is growing variety in the mushrooms available too, not only shiitake and oyster, but also lion’s mane and even chicken of the woods. Even if you can find these for sale in the shops they are expensive, and mushroom logs really pay off in terms of effort and cost versus the financial and nutritional value of the produce.

SOURCE YOUR LOGS

The first thing to source is your logs. Hardwood is best, as they will last longer. Willow works well, as does oak. Few fungi like growing on pine or fruit trees, so they are best avoided. The logs need to be disease-free, about 50cm (20in) in length and 15-30cm (6-12in) in diameter (slimmer logs will fruit earlier as the mycelium only starts to fruit when it has colonised the log). Straight logs are easier to handle, and they need to be freshly cut, that is, less than six weeks old, ideally in the winter. Avoid cutting them when the sap is rising.

One of the chief problems to be avoided is ‘weed’ fungi invading the log before you inoculate it, so avoid logs that have been lying around on the ground for weeks. I have a willow tree that gets pollarded every few years, and that is when I make my mushroom logs. Befriending a tree surgeon or hedge layer is a great way to source logs if you don’t have access to a tree that can afford to lose a limb!

EQUIPMENT

As regards equipment, you will need drill bits of the right dimension and wax to seal the holes. It is inexpensive to buy the correct equipment and important to get the details right for success, soit is best to buy the proper kit when you get your spawn. A good source in the UK is Ann Miller’s Speciality Mushrooms (annforfungi.co.uk).

SPAWN