This contains Oregon Truffle spawn, and spawn for TWO ADDITIONAL edible mushrooms that is dried in a carefully controlled environment to preserve the viability of the spawn. Instructions to extract spores are included. (Kit includes metal tins of dried spawn, and instructions for preparing the habitat for growing in the wild.) Cascadia strain.
INCLUDES ENOUGH SPAWN FOR TWO SOWINGS (approximately 2 mature trees total - 15 yrs or more, more younger trees), which may be done at different times or all at once.
PLEASE READ CAREFULLY BEFORE YOU ORDER!
This combination of mushroom types is only suitable for shady woods where there are at least 2 of the specified trees. It may be sown onto young trees, or more mature trees. It requires CONIFERS. (If sown on two trees in a group, it should be sown on two that are next to each other for faster fruiting - it will spread from those to other trees if the root zones overlap at all.)
BE AWARE THAT TRUFFLES AND OTHER MYCORRHIZAL MUSHROOMS TAKE MANY YEARS TO ESTABLISH! They require a tree with a large root mass to be able to fruit (generally will not fruit on conifers that are less than ABOUT 15 years old).
This combo includes one Mycorrhizal mushroom that will fruit sooner than the truffles (usually at least several years), and a compost mushroom that will fruit even sooner.
Oregon White Truffles are smaller than European white truffles. They look like small new potatoes. They are harvested by raking of the surface duff, and will usually be barely lodged in the soil beneath. They are mycorrhizal, and depend upon specific trees - this variety seems to prefer Douglas Fir, but will likely grow on other types of fir.
The types of mushrooms here will grow well in a location with SHADE, and where there is grass or low undergrowth that is either grazed, or kept low by other means. Truffles should not be sown on trees that are within a certain range of animal feeding or composting operations - calculate the width of the tree at maturity, and double that for the radius that needs to be free of those activities.
The two additional mushroom types serve to help you determine if conditions are correct for the truffles, and they help improve the habitat and make it more suitable for the truffles. Yes, they will all be capable of fruiting on and around the SAME TREES (we have many instances of multiple mycorrhizals on a single tree and have chosen these for compatibility). We do NOT specify the two additional types of mushrooms - only that they are edible (they will be identified in your shipped package). This is so we can supply varieties that are compatible, according to availability, and ensure that the truffles have the best chance of succeeding.
Be sure that you have a suitable location before ordering.
Dried mycorrhizal mushroom spawn must be sown directly into the natural environment, according to our instructions. NOTE: It is VERY important that you follow ALL of our instructions for cultivating these mushrooms - they do not work if you don't. Sowing these mushrooms is EASY, but does require a blender, and non-chlorinated water.
Each order of dried spawning mushroom contains enough to create two batches of active spores, which may be cultured and expanded, and then sown into the desired substrates.
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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