Mushrooms!
We explored the joy of inoculating oak logs with Shiitake mushroom spawn plugs. After a brief class & slideshow, we drilled holes in the logs and tapped in little dowels made of the Shiitake mycelium (fungal mushroom strands) cultured on sawdust with a little grain. Field & Forest is the company we got them from The mycelium grow inside the log and in time and with the right conditions, mushrooms will emerge and “fruit” from the log.
The class also toured the “Mushroom Garden” of other inoculated logs! Oyster Mushroom & Lions’ Mane on “Totems” (logs cut in segments with sawdust spawn between the sections)…and a woodchip/cardboard/sawdust bed on the ground inoculated with Wine Cape mushroom sawdust spawn.
It was a beautiful day, and nice to be together exploring this very natural and ancient practice of cultivating mushrooms that are both tasty and valued for health properties over the centuries.
Some folks stayed on to observe the felling of an oak tree. The tree was honored with a song, and we let the tree know about our intended use, appreciating its contribution to our lives.
Mushrooms!
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