shiitake neglect

[pareil]

back in march i was given a hardwood log
with shiitake spawn in holes along its length.
i was told that it had fruited previously,
but after a 24hr dunk and a new home on my balcony
it didn't show any signs of life for 6 months.
then a few days ago after rain and a drop in temperature, i found this:



and this morning, to my surprise:










could it be anything but shiitake?
should i print it, clone it, or just eat it?
and does anyone have suggestions for care of a log like this?

[Defiance]

Originally Posted by pareil

should i print it, clone it, or just eat it?

All three!

I love shiitake.

[eatyualive]

awesome! eat that bitch alive!

[fahtster]

hehe... beautiful pics! yeah, do all three. nicely done!

fahtster

[Set]

Originally Posted by pareil

and does anyone have suggestions for care of a log like this?

Bury it half way in non-nutritive soil (a casing), or sand. Leave the holes at the top, of course. Then wet down the casing layer.

[mycobri]

beautiful and tasty looking

[srgtm1a]

yeah, do all 3.

Shiitake do tend to take a while when fruiting from logs. The log previously fruiting could be the reason for the smaller yield. The good thing is that you can keep logs for a very long time, and they will continue to fruit. They just do so slowly sometimes.

What I usually do with logs, after they fruit once, is burry the log halfway up in a shady part of my landscaping. Part of it being in the ground will keep the log hydrated, and produce more fruits.

Your best bet, if you want a big yield of shiitake, is to do a bulk bag of substrate. It's quicker, and usually produces better.

good luck.

-SRgTm1A

[OooO]

some people are throwing their logs right down on a hard ground when its colonised for forcing fruiting

[Hippie3]

nice pix

[pareil]

thanks everyone for the feedback!
i was advised by workman to let the cap go to plane before attempting to print,
but alas the humidity dropped again
and i never saw more than a faint dusting of spores on the gills.
i ended up eating it while it was still fresh,
it was so delicious that i failed to save any tissue to clone.
it's still the only mushroom i have seen from that log,
but i have buried it halfway in a planter full of sand
so we'll see what pops up when the weather is again warm.

[WanaWanaWatch]

Pereil,


I know you think that is a weak harvest and maybe so, but it is very impressive to me. Nice photography as well.

I love it when people take good pictures, because a bad one aint worth half a shit you know what I'm sayin. always loved those old mushroom Id books with black and white pictures or fuzzy ones.. what a joke those were. A mushroom is such a complex and wonderful and dangerous thing. its good to use the best of technology affordable when documenting.

I have never had a shiitake fresh. Dried and raw tasted like shit...ake and I couldnt get the taste out of my mouth for hours. You say fresh was delicous eye?

Anyway, this is very inspiring to me! Good work and I look forward to seeing more of your work and photography!

W3

[camMyco]

Great photos Pareil!

[Hippie3]

can one dunk the log ?

[pareil]

i dunked this one in the bathtub.

it was my understanding that the log would fruit outdoors in spring and fall.
now you've got me wondering if i brought it indoors
would the change in environment elicit another flush?

[pareil]

i didn't even have to bring it indoors,
a good soaking in situ coaxed these tasty fruits out.
they were pushing up beneath a large section of bark, which i removed.

[catdaddy]

Damn, Pareil, that's encouraging! I just started another try at shiitake- last one was a contammed mycobag, but vendor MORE than made up for it, and I'm trying again.

Catdaddy