Growing of mushrooms dispels some of weirdness

Mushrooms always struck me as odd, enigmatic characters in the food world -- delicious but strange.

They are a little less strange since I attended a class the other week on growing shiitake mushrooms.

I laughed when R. Craig Mauney said he didn't eat mushrooms until about 10 years ago. But he made a good point. The whole idea of eating fungi doesn't seem like a gastronomic experience to savor.

But it is. And it's especially so with such specialty mushrooms as shiitake. They aren't truffles that can sell for hundreds of dollars a pound. But they are expensive -- at $10 a pound -- and prized for their deep, meaty flavor.

Mauney is a horticulture agent of the Forsyth County office of the N.C. Cooperative Extension Service. He led the Feb. 11 class at the arboretum in Tanglewood Park in Clemmons.

Not hard to grow

Mauney gave an informal, hands-on class that proved to be a great way to learn about shiitakes.

It turns out that shiitakes aren't hard to grow. But they do take some effort, especially to get started.

Shiitakes in this country are cultivated, so the first step is finding a place (usually mail-order) that sells the spores, or spawn, which tend to run about $12 for 100. They are sold as plugs or in sawdust. Think of these as the seeds for your growing project.

Shiitakes grow on wood. "The mycelia (the vegetative parts of a fungus) actually eat the sugars in the log," Mauney said. For the best results, the wood needs to be freshly cut to offer the most nutrients and moisture. It also needs to be hardwood. Oak is best, and sweet gum is OK. Pine should be avoided. It disintegrates too quickly.

Some growers use bags of hardwood sawdust, but most people use logs about 8 inches in diameter and 3 to 4 feet long.

The spawn are perishable, so the trick to starting this project is getting freshly cut wood at the same time you get fresh spawn.

Once you have fresh spawn and logs, you have to inoculate the logs by drilling holes in them -- about four sets of holes spaced six inches apart. The spawn are hammered or pushed into the holes, then the holes are sealed with wax to keep moisture in and unwanted fungi out. Similarly, the ends and any other cut surfaces of the log are sealed with wax, too.

Then the logs need to be put in a shady place, a bit off the ground to provide air flow, and kept moist with occasional watering. "You kind of can forget about them and in six months you'll have mushrooms whether you want them or not," Mauney said.

Shiitakes like temperate weather, so they tend to produce once in the spring and once in the fall.

The first harvest probably will be small, but a log typically will give four harvests over two years before the mycelia have thoroughly pillaged all of the log's nutrients. "You'll be able to tell because the log will get soft. It will start to disintegrate," Mauney said.

Then you have to start again with fresh spawn and logs. A four-foot log can produce about four pounds of fresh shiitakes over two years.

Mauney recommends two or three logs to produce enough mushrooms for home use. "One (log) might not cooperate," he said.

Everyone in the class got to drill, inoculate and seal his or her own two-foot logs to take home.

Having tasted fresh shiitakes, I also know that growing them has another advantage: freshness. The last ones I had kept for two weeks in a paper bag in my fridge.

I've simplified a lot of the process here. The extension service has a lot more information about shiitakes in the forestry section of its Web site, www.ces.ncsu.edu.

Mauney said that about 40 people called about this class, but he could take only 15. So he has scheduled another class from 10 a.m. to noon March 13 at the Arboretum at Tanglewood. The cost is $15; pre-registration is required. Mauney also has information on where to get spawn or other supplies. For more information or to register for the class, call 336-703-2850.

■ Michael Hastings, the Journal's Food editor, can be contacted by phone at 727-7394, e-mail at mhastings@wsjournal.com, or mail at c/o Winston-Salem Journal, P.O. 3159, Winston-Salem, NC 27102. His most recent columns can be read on our Web site at www.journalnow.com.