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Post by LawrenceCoBowhunter on Jan 20, 2006 11:55:49 GMT -5
What is the earliest you have started finding mushrooms?I have a friend who starts finding them in late february or early march if the conditions are right.I don't have much luck finding the black ones,I have to wait for the nice big yellow ones to pop up lol.
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Post by kevin1 on Jan 21, 2006 12:19:44 GMT -5
Considering the milder and damper weather that we've been having I was wondering the same thing . I recently got a flier in the mail from a mushroom kit supply company that confirmed a hunch that I've had for some time , in addition to the usual varieties they actually had a kit for creating a morel mushroom habitat ! It was only $30 and purported to be fairly easy to start and maintain , and with a way to control the environmental factors of temperature and humidity you could conceivably even grow them indoors as well .  |
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Post by kevin1 on Jan 22, 2006 17:06:52 GMT -5
Well , I guess we'll soon find out whether or not you can "grow your own" , I ordered the kit today . I'll report back on how it's going periodically .
They also had some less expensive kits in the $16-17 range for Shiitake , brown oyster , blue oyster , and a pom-pom type , along with some medicinal varieties like reishi . The site claims ease of set up and maintenance , we'll see .
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Post by mbogo on Jan 23, 2006 12:10:03 GMT -5
Please do, I would be interested to hear the results. Morels have presented greater cultivation problems than other types of mushrooms but I guess it was only a matter of time before someone figured out how to do it.
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Post by LawrenceCoBowhunter on Jan 24, 2006 2:45:28 GMT -5
I would like to know to.I remember watching a video my cousin had on doing something like that,seemed to work a;right,atleast on video anyways.
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Post by kevin1 on Jan 24, 2006 6:51:38 GMT -5
Since their ad says that they are selling "spawn" , which I interpret to mean "presprouted mycellia ready to grow" , they've apparently already done the hard part . The user simply provides the growing environment prepared by their directions .
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Post by duff on Jan 24, 2006 21:52:08 GMT -5
In east central Indiana 40 miles north east of Indy, I found some blacks before any green was sprouting, can't recall the actual date but really early. These blacks were the very smallest mushrooms I have ever seen or found. None of them were bigger then the eraser of a pencil. We probably found a couple hundred easy, but was barely worth the effort wehn it came time to eat them. I'd rather find 8 jumbo yellows. I don't even mess with looking much any more. I can't eat them as they don't settle well, I really enjoy looking for them though. makes a good present to the right people.
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Post by kevin1 on Jan 25, 2006 13:12:34 GMT -5
I can't eat them as they don't settle well, I really enjoy looking for them though. makes a good present to the right people. Have you tried Beano™ ? I wonder if those tiny blacks you found were still growing , it seems odd that they were that small . Maybe they had just sprouted when you found them ? |
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Post by duff on Jan 25, 2006 13:24:31 GMT -5
No clue, I have heard too many differernt stories about shrooms and that they just pop up in one size, unlikely. All I know is I only had a few days to go so we took what we found.
I don't think beano would help me. That is fine by me, I need some things that I can't eat!!!
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Post by mbogo on Jan 26, 2006 6:46:54 GMT -5
The fruiting bodies of morels do not grow, they remain the same size as when the first "pop up". I took a course on fungi in college and that was one of the first questions my professor posed to the class.
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Post by kevin1 on Jan 26, 2006 19:08:29 GMT -5
So they're "born" full sized then ?
Somehow I find that a bit of a stretch , even common white mushrooms have a button stage . Perhaps that was what Duff found ?
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Post by kevin1 on Feb 2, 2006 16:39:24 GMT -5
*UPDATE*
The morel habitat kit arrived today and is resting in my fridge until "planting" time . I briefly reviewed the enclosed literature and it sounds pretty simple and straight forward . The variety in the kit is a later sprouting one , it says that I may not see the first ones until after the wild ones have already come up . The temp range for these was from 60 to as high as 80 degrees , and they even produce in Fall if conditions favor them .
The habitat can be between 4-16 square feet , and after it's first growing season I should reasonably expect several pounds of morels each year . Now all I need to do is select an appropriate semi-shady spot and do the ground prep . There's a spot next to my dog's kennel that should provide the correct conditions , and the dogs will keep out hungry deer and turkeys for me .
More later as the story develops .
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Post by duff on Feb 2, 2006 23:00:28 GMT -5
I'd be real interested in your results. How much was the kit?
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Post by kevin1 on Feb 3, 2006 6:06:18 GMT -5
Duff , including shipping it was just a bit over $35 .
The directions are pretty easy to understand , and the site prep could easily be done with no more than a digging fork or shovel . Maintaining the organic content of the bed and keeping it moist should be the hardest part . The site that I've selected previously had cordwood stacked on it that was left to rot for several years , so the organic content is already high , and has the appropriate level of shade . I plan to break out my shredder as soon as the weather breaks and build up a mulch bed there as well as turning some under . If it works as advertised I may even expand it to include some other varieties .
I'll keep everybody posted on the progress of the bed on this thread throughout the coming months .
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Post by DEERTRACKS on Feb 3, 2006 8:17:06 GMT -5
Spear-heads 1st week of April, Morels 2nd-3rd week of April when the weather was wet & unseasonably warm nights.
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Post by raporter1 on Feb 3, 2006 23:43:28 GMT -5
Hey Kevin, if that works I will have to start renting my ladder stand out to you. Say a pound or two for the season.  |
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Post by kevin1 on Feb 4, 2006 0:07:25 GMT -5
Bob , if it works I'll gladly bring a chunk of infused soil over to your place as thanks for my previous use of the stand and you can grow your own . The next time I come over I'll bring the enclosed literature for your perusal , I think you'll find it interesting . Imagine cultivating your own shiitakes or oysters , and I've seen similar offers for kits from other sites for a few other species as well . You could have a regular fungi farming op going at your place for a very reasonable cost . |
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Post by duff on Feb 5, 2006 22:30:31 GMT -5
That is what I was thinking. I know of a few places that pay decent for morels, if you could cultivate them good enough it would be well worth the effort IMO.
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Post by quackhead100 on Feb 6, 2006 10:41:07 GMT -5
I spoke to a guy at the Louisville boat and sport show Friday that had a "mushroom booth" and he said the morel kits work pretty well, but remember to water with rain water. The chlorine in "city water" kills mushroom spores. Thought I'd pass it along.
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Post by kevin1 on Feb 6, 2006 12:02:34 GMT -5
Thanks Quackhead , I never even thought of that !  Looks like I'll need to set up a rain catcher , or use some dechlorinator of some kind .There's a downspout on the back of my house that isn't connected anymore , now to find a bucket ... |
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