PART 5 Mycology in the Garden: Grow Mushrooms on Logs

Mushroom logs are a great way to incorporate fungi into your home scale or hobby enterprises. They can be placed around a garden bed or stacked in shady areas of the garden. Logs are a reliable and hardy way to grow wood eating species such as shiitakes and oysters, and are great for home-scale gardeners.


In this video we show you how to inoculate logs with medicinal reishi mushrooms in your garden. It's a great way to decompose logs and add organic material to your ecosystem as well as grow medicinal mushrooms that have been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for 4,000+ years. We are joined by Carter Humphrey from Central Texas Mycological Society and the Myco Research Station at Circle Acres.

STEPS 

1. Besides the mushroom culture, the most important part is having the right wood. Find a hardwood log that is fresh - no more than a month old. This ensures it isn't already home to other fungi, and yours will have a clear shot at colonizing the log.
2. Purchase inoculated dowels for your logs - species that do well in Texas are shiitake, oyster, turkey tail, and reishi. Growing your own is quite doable, but takes setting up a clean environment at home. We recommend North Spore and Mushroom Mountain. 
3. Once you have logs that are right for your project, cut them into lengths that are easy to handle: 2 to 4 feet with a diameter of 6 to 10 inches is ideal.
4. Drill holes about 1 to 1 ½ inches deep into the log in at regular intervals - about 4 to 6 inches apart in a diamond pattern, all around the log. Doing more will make it easier for the mushroom mycelium to spread through the wood and go faster.
5. Tap the plugs into each hole with a hammer until they are flush with the edge of the log.  It's a bit like grafting a tree. Brush melted paraffin or beeswax over the hole to seal it up, which will keep it moist and protected for the first few weeks. 
6. Some people also wax one end of the log to keep moisture in, leaving the other side unwaxed in order to allow for wicking. 
7. Situate the logs under dappled shade, or on the shady side of a building where you can visit to check on them once a month. Near a water source is ideal - the logs should be kept moist. If they become light and dry, you'll

​If you are in Austin, you can sign up to get recycled mushroom blocks for your garden.
If you are not from Austin, find a mushroom farm in your area.

PART 1: Benefits of Fungi in Soil

PART 4: Grow Mushrooms in Containers