Step by Step Guide to Growing Shiitake Mushrooms

1. Choose the type of growing medium you want to employ. For hobbyists, we recommend logs, for shiitake mushrooms because they provide a more natural and stable environment for the fungi to grow. Logs are able to hold moisture for a longer period of time, which helps to ensure the mushrooms receive a consistent level of hydration. Additionally, logs are more resistant to contamination from other species of fungi, making them a safer choice for growing shiitake mushrooms. Sawdust blocks are easier to contaminate and can dry out quickly, making them less suitable for growing shiitake mushrooms.

2. Purchase or gather your mushroom spawn. Shiitake mushroom spawn is available online and at many local nurseries or gardening stores. Spawns come in a variety of forms: Plug, sawdust, grain, and peg spawns are all available. We like plug spawns for log growth, sawdust spawns for

3. Prepare a suitable growing medium. Make sure that the logs are free of rot or disease, then drill holes the same size as (or very slightly larger than) the spawn diameter, approximately 1 inch deep. Unless the spawn instructions say otherwise, space the holes approximately 3-4 inches apart.

4. Inoculate the logs or sawdust blocks with the mushroom spawn. Place the spawn in the holes you drilled in the previous step, then cover them with a thin layer of wax or cheesecloth. The vendor you purchased your spawns from likely sells plug wax, but cheese wax works as well.

If you are inoculating different logs at different times, it's probably handy to label the log with some kind of date label or color code and keep a note on your phone mapping the inoculation date to each color.

5. Place the inoculated logs or sawdust blocks in a shady, moist location. The ideal temperature range for growing Shiitake mushrooms is between 50 and 70 degrees F.

6. Mist the logs or sawdust blocks regularly with water to keep them moist. Misting is recommended to be done between once a day to once every three days, but I like to do it every day for consistency's sake. Unless you're in a particularly dry environment, you can probably get away with less, but a light, daily misting is foolproof.

7. Harvest your Shiitake mushrooms when the caps are still closed and the gills are still white. The exact amount of time will vary depending on light conditions, humidity, temperature, and other factors, but this will usually be between 4 and 8 weeks after inoculation.