A Fungus Fit For a King

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After about one week, the shiitake must be exposed to light for five days. (Sunlight or fluorescent light is fine, but grow-lights won't work at all.) Unless clear plastic bags are used, you'll have to uncover the container . . . and administer a daily misting to make sure the compost is kept moist.

When the exposure time is up, return the tray to the plastic bag—and to its dark confines—for six to seven more weeks . . . which is the amount of time necessary for the mushroom seed to spread throughout the compost. This "spawn run" will be finished once a white growth (called mycelium) covers the outer surfaces of the culture.

At that point, uncover the container . . . turn on the lights . . . and wait for the fruiting bodies (the part of the mushroom you eat) to appear. In a week to ten days, tiny pins will form and will soon develop into mature edibles. The tray (or trays) must be kept moist during this time (a hose with a mist nozzle does a nice job), but don't overwater them. (It's also important that the area be well vent ilated ... otherwise the mushrooms may produce long, tough stems.)

As the one-legged edibles reach the desired stage (they'll vary in size from half an inch to two inches across the caps), cut each of them off at the base with a sharp knife. After that harvest, a second crop should appear in two weeks if the tray is kept moist. In fact, you can usually obtain three or four crops from a single container!

Once production ceases, remove the mushroom compost and give your livestock a gastronomical feast. Then, before using the container again, clean it well with hot water and a scrub brush.

ANOTHER GROWING METHOD

If you don't have critters to feed or a garden that needs compost—and if you're willing to wait a year or two for your first shiitake crop—I've found an easier growing method . . . one that doesn't require the use of straw cultures or cages.

First, in the fall, obtain a cord of oak logs. Then, in the following spring, drill holes in the wood and pound about 750 spawned wood chips (per cord) into the holes. Stack the logs in a pile, and—after about a year—the first mushrooms will appear. This crop won't be very big, but by the second year the logs will be covered with delectable fungi.

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