Black Morels (Morchella Elata group) that are dried in a carefully controlled environment to preserve the viability of the spawn. Instructions to extract spores are included.(Kit includes a metal tin of dried Morel spawn, and instructions to create the appropriate environment for growing out of doors.) Cascadia Strain.
NOTE: Black Morels take many years to establish, and require an area that is at least 25 square feet in size (Blonde Morels take slightly more space). They require patience and care, and the creation of a natural environment out of doors. A companion mushroom is provided which aids the growth of the Morels by helping make additional nutrients available for the Morels.
Morels are sort of the Holy Grail of mushroom cultivation. They have been grown in containment a few times, and some vendors sell kits for growing them outdoors, but they have a reputation for not growing. There are several reasons for this, including inappropriate habitat, lack of understanding about how they grow, and lack of understanding of how to stimulate fruiting. There is also a school of thought that promotes the concept that these are mycorrhizals, but previous research indicates that this is not the case. They are simply heavy feeders that need high amounts of certain nutrients, and they require a fairly significant mycellial mass (a lot of root fungus).
Black Morels are somewhat more flexible in their growing conditions, but this strain prefers soils on the alkaline side. Bears in the spring, after rains. Our strain of Black Morels grow slightly smaller than our Blonde Morels, and are a firmer, slightly meatier mushroom.
This is a compost mushroom that loves shade and woody debris with lots of leaf litter. It grows near hardwoods or leafy bushes. It can be sown where you place a lot of hardwood debris and leaf litter.
CAUTION!! This mushroom is listed as causing sensitivities in some people. It should NOT be eaten raw, but should always be well-cooked (10 minute minimum). Some people who have reported sensitivities to it have also stated that cooking may not have been thorough. It is considered to be a good edible the world over.
Black Morel is potentially a good garden mushroom for shady woodchip gardens or woodlots, where leaves and wood debris are layered on, but ONLY where you can add wood ash or other soil supplements to stimulate fruiting or adjust the soil.
Must be sown out of doors in appropriate habitat.
Each order of dried spawning mushroom contains enough to create two batches of active spores, which may be sown into the prepared habitat.
Dried Spawn is EASY to use! Just reconstitute in water, and either finely chop or use a blender, and pour the resulting spore and mushroom mixture over your substrate or onto the ground where they need to be sown.
Packaged in metal tins for longest storage and viability. We do not use plastic in handling this product (plastic leaches chlorides, which are fungicidal in effect), and our products are not exposed to chlorine or other harmful chemicals during growth, processing, or handling on our property. You may be assured of the highest quality and maximum growth potential.
NOTE: Dried spawning mushrooms must be selected and handled correctly to produce viable spores. They must also be used correctly to extract spores, and then to culture the spores into the receiving medium. Our proprietary methods ensure viable spores, and we give you instructions for culturing them in a non-sterile environment. (If cultured improperly in a non-sterile environment, things go terribly wrong.) You are not only paying for the mushroom spores, you are paying for our expertise in both the processes we carry out before you see the product, and the instructions we give you for using the spawning mushroom.
Cross contaminations DO occur with non-sterile mushroom spawn (they seem to occur with alarming frequency with supposed sterile spawn as well!). In general, these contaminations are harmless, they may produce other non-edible, or other edible mushrooms, but for the most part, the mushroom you paid for will outnumber the contaminations by many times, and will not establish ahead of the desired mushroom.
Additionally, when using non-sterile methods to culture in natural materials, prior colonizations of unwanted fungus may occur, resulting in the fruiting of unexpected, random mushroom types. This is not at all a disaster, and normally does not cause problems. These mushrooms will typically be inedible, and may be ignored - in our experience, the cultured mushroom still establishes well and will produce well in spite of the interlopers! The chance that a poisonous look-alike would grow instead is virtually non-existent - because dangerous look-alikes don't grow in the same environment as visually similar edible species.
We do advise that you KNOW YOUR MUSHROOM - and that you know what it looks like, so you correctly identify anything coming up. This is wise in every instance, because even when you are using "sterile" kits or materials, rogue mushrooms may grow.
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