How to grow oyster mushrooms at home - tips and instructions

Gone are the days when mushrooms could be found only in the forest. Now, any person who has never had anything to do with their cultivation can get a rich harvest. You only need to buy the right materials, follow the instructions for growing oyster mushrooms at home and maintain optimal conditions.

Choosing a mushroom for home growing

There are artificial plantations with different types of mushrooms: ceps, shiitake, champignons and others. I consider oyster mushrooms to be popular, which are unpretentious and give a rich harvest. With one kilogram of mycelium with a skillful approach, 3-4 kilograms of mushrooms are obtained.

Thin strings of the mushroom body, from which oyster mushrooms grow, are called mycelium or mycelium. To start growing, you need to purchase a certain amount of mycelium - experienced mushroom growers are advised to start with one kilogram.

Such an activity is suitable for both children who want to spend time with interest and test themselves as gardeners, as well as adults who want to acquire a new hobby. She may also be interested in those who are thinking about their own business. With skillful cultivation, the profitability of oyster mushrooms is quite high. It remains to choose a method of growing a future plantation.

Methods for growing oyster mushrooms

You can use one of two methods: extensive and intensive. Intensive is closer to natural conditions and depends on the season, in contrast to extensive, thanks to which you can grow oyster mushrooms all year round.

The differences of the methods are indicated in the table.

	Extensive way	Intensive way
The essence of the method	Cultivation occurs in conditions close to real.	Fully equipped with artificial conditions.
Required Tools and Materials	Mycelium, film, stumps, moss.	Mycelium, bags, humidifiers, fans, extract.
Growing purpose	Hobbies, growing for yourself.	Business, growing for profit.
Room	Kitchen garden.	Room for incubation and room for cultivation.

The disadvantages and advantages of both methods of cultivation.

Extensive way	Advantages	disadvantages
1.	The natural environment, the ability to grow in your garden.	Dependence on season and weather.
2.	Less expensive way.	Oyster mushroom ripening takes longer.
3.	Mushrooms do not need to be constantly watched.	It is impossible to control the number and timing of implementation, which makes the method unsuitable for marketing oyster mushrooms.
Intensive way	Advantages	disadvantages
1.	Full control over the growth of the finished product.	Two separate rooms with suitable growing conditions are needed.
2.	Regulation and control of the number of oyster mushrooms grown.	Monetary investments not only in premises, but also in materials.
3.	Establishing a business for the sale of oyster mushrooms and compensation for the cost of buying materials.	It takes more time to observe and control the growth of fungi.

Preparation for growing

Having decided on the method, it is necessary to take preparatory steps. Read the instructions and understand the intricacies of the process.

Now you need to purchase mycelium:

Find a seller and make your own purchase.
Get mycelium in a specialized online store.

Before buying, determine the type of mycelium. If you are in doubt about the quality of the product, first purchase a small amount per sample.

If possible, examine the packaging of the product before purchasing. Read the content data, look at the expiration date. Pay attention to the appearance of the mycelium: there should not be black and green spots that indicate the presence of mold. Such mycelium will not bear fruit. Fresh mycelium is white with a splash of orange and yellow.

The mycelium deteriorates quickly, so limit yourself to a kilogram of the product for the first time, so that there is enough time to properly distribute the mycelium for planting. After the purchase, check the temperature of the mycelium, it should be 20 degrees.

Features of growing on stumps

The simple but long way is extensive. It consists in planting mycelium in hemp.

Choose suitable stumps: without mold and with damp wood (it is better to soak dry ones for a couple of days in water).
Make holes in the stumps with a drill, five to seven centimeters deep, pour the mycelium into them and cover with moss. There is another way: saw off the upper part of the stump, make a small recess, pour the mycelium there, put the upper part of the log back in place and nail it back with nails.
Place the hemp in a special room, laying on top of each other. Cover with a thick film and leave alone for three months. Keep the temperature at about 15 degrees indoors.
When white spots appear on the stumps, it means that oyster mushrooms are ready for planting. The optimal time for this is the end of spring (early May).
Dig holes in the ground, cover with moist leaves and place hemp with mycelium on top, deepening by 15 centimeters. The soil should always be moist, so water it every day.
The first crop will be at the end of summer. Gently twist the mushrooms, but do not cut them with a knife. Slices of mushrooms should not remain in the mycelium, so as not to provoke decay. Optimal conditions will allow harvesting several more times in the fall.
The mushroom picker will bear fruit in the next year, but it needs to be protected from frost by properly covering the stumps with straw.

Growing oyster mushrooms in natural conditions is a simple and not expensive way that gives a good harvest (although not as large as when creating artificial conditions). Most of the time is spent preparing the plantation and watering the mail.

Video instruction

Features of growing in bags

If you want to seriously engage in the cultivation of oyster mushrooms, find a suitable room (basement, greenhouse), install the necessary equipment - humidifiers and fans to provide the necessary conditions (temperature, importance, lighting), place racks or hangers for bags with a substrate.

If you have already purchased the right amount of mycelium, the next step is to prepare the substrate - a mixture of plant components: ears of corn, buckwheat, straw, sunflower, wheat and others. It is important that there are no putrefactive inclusions in the substrate.
To grow one batch of mushrooms, 10 kilograms of substrate is enough, which must be crushed to a size of several centimeters.
Heat the substrate and disinfect it. Boil the mixture for about two hours over low heat. After lowering the temperature to 26 degrees, drain the water. Now the substrate is sufficiently moistened and safe for fungi. Make a solution by pouring a spoonful of yeast in 250 ml of water. Add the yeast solution along with a spoonful of slaked lime to the substrate to disinfect.
Prepare two plastic bags per kilogram of mycelium. Leave them for two hours in a solution of bleach for disinfection.
Mix the substrate with mycelium or place it in layers. Gradually, you will understand which method is more suitable.
Transfer the bags with the substrate to a dark room. Light for mushroom growth is not required at this stage. The room should be maintained at a temperature not exceeding twenty-two degrees.
After two weeks, the mycelium will entangle the substrate with threads and a homogeneous mass will begin to form. This is a sign of the end of the incubation period. Lower the temperature to 12 degrees and increase the humidity to 95%.
Two weeks later, you can collect the first crop of oyster mushroom. Unscrew the mushrooms from the bag (do not cut). In total, oyster mushrooms will bear fruit four times. The main crop will appear in the first two months.

Growing oyster mushrooms in bags requires significant cash costs, but the profitability of the method is much higher. You yourself control the crop and its volume.

Video plot

Growing oyster mushrooms as a business - is it worth starting?

Growing mushrooms at home is a popular and profitable business. At low cost, you can get good money.

Examine the process to the smallest detail to eliminate accidental loss. For sale, choose an intensive method of growing oyster mushrooms to fully control growth.

When manufacturing on a large scale, resort to the help of hired workers. It’s hard for one to follow the process. Get two rooms - one use for incubation, the second - for growing mushrooms. Equip the premises in accordance with the standards so that the product is really high-quality.

If you are just starting out, the basement is fine, but you still need the investment. In general, this type of business has high profitability, because with intensive cultivation you are not dependent on the season. Having filled your hand, you can expand production by growing other types of mushrooms.

Useful Tips

At first, do not buy a large amount of mycelium. It tends to deteriorate quickly. To gain experience, start with one kilogram of mycelium.
Buy mycelium only from trusted sellers. If you buy goods from a new seller or in an online store, first order a small batch.
Before buying, examine the data and appearance of the mycelium.
Keep track of the temperature of the room and substrate. Install fans in the room.
Cold is contraindicated in oyster mushrooms. They just will not rise.
Only use gloves with mycelium. This is a powerful allergen!
It is better to soak a dry tree for a couple of days in water. Oyster mushrooms need moisture to grow.
Unscrew the mushrooms from the substrate so as not to cause rotting of the raw material.
Raw materials for the substrate must be fresh and free of mold.
Oyster mushrooms are one of the most unpretentious mushrooms. Only temperature and humidity need to be controlled.
Over time, you can learn to grow mycelium on your own, so as not to depend on external factors: sellers, prices, quality, etc.

If you are just starting to grow mushrooms at home, oyster mushrooms are an appropriate option at the training stage. They do not require serious care, so you can very well turn this activity into an interesting hobby or a successful business.