Growing shiitake
Shiitake (Lentinula edodes) works best at home with a mature, brown grow block. Give the block a cold shock, for example 12 to 24 hours in cold water, and expect the first harvest 6 to 12 days later. Making a block yourself takes 10 to 14 weeks of colonisation.
Mushroom Mania (BE) · BS-23Mushroom Mania (BE) · BS-28Field & Forest Products (VS) · BS-11Praktijkonderzoek Plant & Omgeving / Wageningen UR · BS-47Shiitake grows on hardwood such as oak or beech. A block first has to mature and turn brown before it fruits. On logs outdoors it takes 6 months to 2 years until the first harvest.
Cornell Small Farms Program · BS-03Mushroom Mania (BE) · BS-23Mushroom Mania (BE) · BS-28Ohio State University Extension (Ohioline) · BS-04Ohio State University Extension (Ohioline) · BS-72Maturing first
Keep the bag of a Mushroom Mania kit closed until the block is 50–75 % brown. If you open it too early, fruiting often fails. A home-made block colonises for 10 to 12 weeks (Mushroom Mania) or 10 to 14 weeks (Wageningen). Shiitake is therefore much slower than oyster mushroom.
Mushroom Mania (BE) · BS-23Mushroom Mania (BE) · BS-28Praktijkonderzoek Plant & Omgeving / Wageningen UR · BS-47The cold shock
Put a block in the fridge for at least 24 hours (at most 10 days) before opening it, or soak it for 12 to 24 hours in cold water. Both routes trigger fruiting.
Field & Forest Products (VS) · BS-11Mushroom Mania (BE) · BS-23Mushroom Mania (BE) · BS-28Fruiting
The sources give 15–24 °C. On humidity they differ: 60–70 % in one study versus 80–90 % at Field & Forest. Give indirect daylight or 8 to 12 hours of lamp light per day and regular fresh air, otherwise you get misshapen mushrooms.
Field & Forest Products (VS) · BS-11Mushroom Mania (BE) · BS-23Elsevier / PMC · BS-45Harvest and next flush
Harvest when the cap is almost flat and about 80 % of the gills are visible. Then let the block rest and dry for 7 to 14 days, and soak it for at least 6 hours in cold water for the next flush. A block gives 1 to 3 flushes, the grow pack 2 to 3.
Field & Forest Products (VS) · BS-11Mushroom Mania (BE) · BS-28How much will you harvest?
A kit gives 400–800 g over several flushes. The 5 kg DIY pack gives 1.4–2.2 kg.
Mushroom Mania (BE) · BS-23Mushroom Mania (BE) · BS-28Which substrate not?
According to GroCycle, Master's mix is unsuitable for shiitake: too much nitrogen. Use sawdust with about 20 % bran.
GroCycle (VK) · BS-39Elsevier / PMC · BS-45Fungi Ally (VS) · BS-46Always cook well
Raw or undercooked shiitake can cause an itchy, streak-shaped skin rash in some people (flagellate dermatitis). According to ANSES, a quick stir-fry is sometimes not enough. Mushroom Mania advises about 20 minutes of boiling or heating.
DermNet (NZ) · BS-57ANSES (FR) · BS-58Mushroom Mania (BE) · BS-23Voedingscentrum · BO-02Source
- Kan je champignons/paddenstoelen rauw eten? — Voedingscentrum
- Outdoor Production — Cornell Small Farms Program
- Shiitake Mushroom Production: Inoculating Logs with Spawn (F-0040) — Ohio State University Extension (Ohioline)
- How to Grow Shiitake from Ready-to-Fruit Blocks — Field & Forest Products (VS)
- Shiitake – Growkit — Mushroom Mania (BE)
- Shiitake – Kweekpakket (5 kg) — Mushroom Mania (BE)
- What is Master's Mix + How to Make It? — GroCycle (VK)
- Effects of different levels of wheat bran, rice bran and maize powder supplementation with saw dust on the production of shiitake (Moonmoon et al. 2010, Saudi J Biol Sci) — Elsevier / PMC
- Growing Shiitake Mushrooms in Bags with Supplemented Sawdust — Fungi Ally (VS)
- Biologisch geteelde bijzondere paddestoelen (Baar & Amsing 2004) — Praktijkonderzoek Plant & Omgeving / Wageningen UR
- Shiitake flagellate dermatitis — DermNet (NZ)
- Vigil'Anses n°13 — toxicovigilance shiitake (maart 2021) — ANSES (FR)
- Shiitake Mushroom Production: Steps to Cultivation and Considerations for Production (F-0039) — Ohio State University Extension (Ohioline)
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This is general growing information from the sources listed. Always follow the instructions of your kit or supplier. Only eat what demonstrably grows from your own culture of the bought, named species; if in doubt about colour, smell or shape, do not eat it.
This is not medical advice. If you repeatedly get a fever, a cough or shortness of breath while growing indoors, remove the culture and see your doctor.
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