Growing Calocybe indica, the Giant Milky

What you will need:

• 1/2 bale Shredded Cereal Straw (Oat, Wheat, Rye)
• 1 Bag Giant Milky Spawn (5lb sawdust)
• 15 – 3 gallon nursery pots
• 1 – 40qt bag of potting soil

Method:

1. Pasteurize your shredded straw in hot water (160-180F) for about two hours. Drain and cool on a clean tarp or table until cool until touch.
2. Mix in one bag of Giant Milky sawdust spawn into the cooled straw, until very well mixed.
3. Clean nursery pots with rubbing alcohol, and once the alcohol evaporates, stuff the spawned straw mixture into the pots tightly, leaving about 3″ space from the top, leveling the surface.
4. Place in a cool, shaded area, covering with a tarp so they do not dry out quickly. Check daily and water if needed to maintain even moisture. Do not expose them to extreme heat until they are done colonizing. It will take 1-2 weeks for the straw to colonize and turn white.
5. Once they are colonized, remove the tarp.
6. Apply 1″ of wet potting soil, pre-moisten it before applying to make sure it is evenly moist. Level the potting soil. Now you should have about 2″ of free space from the top of the pot. Recover with a tarp to retain moisture and water when needed to maintain a damp appearance, NOT WET, or the mycelium will not be able to breathe. Now the pots can be moved into a warmer location if needed up to 105F, but in shaded or bright location, not direct sun.
7. After two weeks, remove the tarp covering the cased growing material and keep misted to prevent drying out.  Mushrooms should form within 2-3 weeks. Continue to mist them until they are large and the caps flatten.

Harvest by twisting and pulling gently. Trim the soiled area, and either cook or store in a paper bag in the fridge for up to a week.

What’s Next?

1. Stop watering and allow the casing soil surface to dry out for two weeks after harvest.
2. Drench the pots and soil surface with water until saturated.
3. Cover with tarp and repeat for another flush or two.
4. When the pots have stopped fruiting you can compost the contents of the pots.

For growing other warm climate species, please check out the links below.

• Growing Oyster Mushrooms – you can grow these on different substrates that are found in the tropics…lemon grass, banana leaves, water hyacinth, palm leaves, and many more. All substrates need to be dried and pasteurized.
• Almond Portabella  – blog coming soon, but meanwhile you can read about it here.
• Paddy Straw – These mushrooms fruit only above 80F and actually prefers 90+F, this protein rich species can be grown on many other slightly composted, dried vegetable wastes.