Things to Keep in Mind before Buying Mushroom Logs

Sometimes you may not be in a mood to step out of your home to get mushrooms and would like to have them at your own backyard. Cultivating mushrooms at your home is a great idea because you will not only get fresh mushrooms but also feel great about your homegrown success. Log cultivated mushrooms at home have superior taste alongside texture and appearance than the ones that are available commercially.

Preparing the mushroom log is one of the most important things you should consider in the beginning. But, one needs to have knowledge about growing the substrates and put in efforts. However, you can also buy Mushroom Logs from one of the reputed suppliers. In that case, you should keep certain things in mind before buying them.

Choosing the oak species: When you plan to buy Mushroom Logs it is important that you choose oak wood belonging to the white oak group. It is the most preferred species as they decompose slowly providing food for several years to the fungi. Consequently, they offer a longer harvest period. The logs are kept in production for three seasons providing them with ideal conditions. After three seasons, it provides an average yield of 1.5 lbs of mushrooms per log yearly. Other hardwoods that can be used are birch, beech, hickory, and cherry but they have a shorter productive life span compared to oak.

Using freshly cut log: Make sure the log to be used for growing mushrooms are cut from living trees during winter or early spring when the daytime temperature is warm but it is cold at night. At this time, the sap of the tree begins to move upwards which remains stored in the roots during winters. In addition, a freshly cut log has high moisture content which aids the development of mycelium. It is a long-lasting source of food as they have not yet started to decompose.

Prevent unwanted fungus: Make sure that the substrate to be used for growing mushrooms is not vulnerable to colonization by a fungus of other species which are unwanted. When unwanted fungus gets the right conditions, it competes with the mushrooms. A log which is prepared from green wood or freshly cut trees is not already colonized by other fungi.

Size of logs: Before buying the substrates, one should consider the size so that it is easy to handle. Growers mostly prefer harvesting logs that range from 3 inches to 6 inches in diameter and 3 to 4 ft long. Substrates that are larger than this becomes very heavy when they are soaked in water to induce fruiting making them difficult to maintain and transport.

Choosing the supplier: A good quality log can boost the production of mushrooms. If you choose to get it from a supplier, you need to ensure that they are specialized in manufacturing high-quality safety mushroom substrates. In addition, an experienced supplier implements the most innovative and hygienic techniques and has the capability to meet your expectations.

Once you have got the substrates, this will enable you to grow mushrooms for several consecutive years.