Over this this past year I’ve developed a renewed interest in mycology. This current experiment developed out of my renewed interest and my continuing fascination with mycology.
My current experiment involves growing Blue Oyster Mushrooms indoors using the Monotub technique adapted for use with sawdust as a substrate (growth medium).
This video summarizes the procedure and technique for setting up a Monotub (The Complete Monotub Tek Cultivation Walk-through
I have seen oyster mushrooms grown on manure compost in Monotubes or in bags of sawdust or straw as well as outdoors on hardwood logs. Since I have no access to a yard and since I have used the Monotub technique in the past I'm hoping that it will work with using sawdust as a substrate (growth medium). I haven't seen anyone else growing them on sawdust in a Monutub and there may be good reasons for this though I haven't come across any yet. Keeping my fingers crossed.
I am using standard storage containers, like in the video linked above. For the growing medium I am using 10 cups of hardwood sawdust pellets, 2 1/2 cups wheat bran, 9-10 cups of spring water along with 1/2 of a 6lb bag of grain spawn. All of this was mixed up by hand in a 5 gallon bucket and transferred to one storage tub. I repeated the process for the second tub.
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| tubs with sawdust and spawn |
Pictures at 5 days after inoculation.
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| tub fully colonized with mycelium |
After 5 days I added a layer of casing, about 1 ½ inches of coconut husk fiber hydrated to “field
capacity”. "Field capacity" means that when you squeeze a handful of the material you should get a drip or 2 of water out. Oyster mushrooms will fruit without a casing layer being added, unlike many other mushrooms. I added the casing layer specifically to help maintain moisture and humidity levels within the tub.
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| Prep for adding casing layer |
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| After adding casing layer |
Now that the mycelium has fully colonized the sawdust substrate and I've added a casing layer of hydrated coconut fiber it is time to ensure correct conditions for fruiting (the fruit being a mushroom).
The most important environmental considerations in growing mushrooms are: light exposure, ventilation/air changes, humidity and temperature. Each type of mushroom requires different conditions. I've listed the specifications for "fruiting" for Blue Oyster Mushrooms in the chart below (this is a compilation of information from different sources and is not meant to be exact).
The simplest way to maintain these conditions is to open the tubs and use the lid to fan them several times a day along with using a mist sprayer to add water after each ventilation while keeping them in an area that is the correct temperature.
My next Fungal post will address controlling these conditions using sensors and micro-controllers.
The main supplies that I've used in this experimental test are listed below:
10lbs Hardwood sawdust pellets
“Harbor Blue” Pleurotus ostreatus (discount grain spawn)
Local hardware store and grocery store
2 gallons spring water (Ice Mountain)
wheat bran (Bobs Red Mill)
Further information on growing Oyster Mushrooms can be found all over the internet. A few reputable sources are listed below:
https://extension.psu.edu/cultivation-of-oyster-mushrooms
https://smallfarms.cornell.edu/projects/mushrooms/indoor-production/
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