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Shiitake Mushroom kit Growing Instructions
A) Mini Farm kit
Step 1
Remove the plastic wrapping around the log, and soak the log in clean cold water for 2 to 4 hrs. (weighting it down to prevent floating )
Step 2
Place the log on a plate as indicated in following figure. Then, cover the log with the humidity tent with its opened side down. You may roll up a little of the tent on its opened side so it can be easier to rest on the plate.
Step 3
Mist the log surface AT LEAST twice a day. You should always keep the log surface in a humid environment. If not, mist more often. You will see small bumps on your log as well as white mucelium growing in a few days. These bumps, called pins, are premature shiitake mushrooms. Harvesting should begin somewhere between day 7 and 14.
B) Long log kit
Step 1
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Remove the plastic wrap(do not throw it away), which you will use as a humidity tent later. Sometimes, because of delayed delivery, the log may already start growing. No worry, please just follow the instructions.
Step 2
Soak the log in cold water for 2 to 4 hours. Please use a weight to keep the whole log underneath water. Longer time soaking may cause the log to be broken easily.
Step 3
Put the log on any counter, plate or tray and let the side with four shallow holes face up. Then, cove the log with the humidity tent, which you removed from the log at the first step. . You may roll up a little of the tent on its opened side so it can be easier to rest on the plate.
Step 4
Mist the log surface AT LEAST twice a day. You should always keep the log surface in a humid environment. If not, mist more often. You will see small bumps on your log as well as white mycelium growing in a few days. These bumps, called pins, are premature shiitake mushrooms. Later you may remove the tent when mushrooms are touching the inside of the tent. Harvesting should begin somewhere between day 7 and 14.
Once you cut your mushroom bag open and set your kit in an ideal location, try not to move, shift, or jiggle the kit. Doing so may delay the fruiting of your mushrooms.
Growing Conditions
Temperature: 55°F~75°F. However, shiitake mushrooms need low temperature to initiate (55-65°F). If your home does not meet the low temperature requirement, place the soaked log within the humidity tent in refrigerator (3-6°C) for 24 hours. High temperature (>75 °F) will degrade the quality of mushrooms as well as cause green mold. Keep in mind that for shiitake, cooler is always better than warmer.
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Light: Shiitake mushrooms need light to grow, but do not expose your kit to direct sun light.
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Water: Fresh tap water is ok. Dechlorinated tap water or well water works better, but do not use distilled water (which lacks minerals) or rainwater caught from a roof or gutters (which contains many contaminants). To remove chlorine from tap water: fill a pot with tap water and let it sit out, uncovered, for 24 hours or boil the water for 10 minutes, making sure the water has cooled to room temperature before using.
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Harvest: The best time to harvest is when the mushrooms caps are still slightly curled under. If the cap flattens out, harvest right away as this is an indication that it is preparing to produce spores.
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Green Mold: Shiitake mushroom log is easy to be contaminated with green mold in an open area. Keep your shiitake mushroom kit away from any plants, food or fruits. High humidity is very helpful to prevent green mold. But if you find any green mold spot on your log, cut the spot off immediately, and rinse the place carefully.
For multiple flushes (flush—a round of mushrooms)
Your Shiitake mushrooms can be harvested at 10-day intervals for up to 16 weeks. The Shiitake Mushroom log will produce ~1 pound of mushrooms over a 12-16 week period.
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When you pick up all shiitake mushrooms, make sure to remove any left mushrooms stems. Then prepare your log for a next flush:
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Leave your shiitake log without the humidity tent and stop spraying for 2 days.
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Soak the log in cold water overnight. After drain water, loosely wrap it with the humidity tent, and put it in a cool dark place for 4 days. In summer, you may need place the log in refrigerator for 2 days befroe you go to step 3.
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Place it back on the plate, cover it with the tent and mist it as you did before.
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Enjoy another growing flush!
