Each species of mushroom is a different growing experience. Even if you have grown mushrooms before, please read the instructions for your kit carefully before proceeding. If you run into any problems please see our FAQ.
Step 4: Initiating Fruiting Lion's Mane
Deflate the block by loosening the twist tie and squeezing out the air. once deflated, tightly re-apply the twist tie.
Choose a spot on the bag from which you will grow your mushrooms.
Use a clean knife to cut a cross pattern about 5cm long and wide.
You can choose to grow your mushrooms from just one spot, or from several at once.
Lion's Mane mushrooms grow best when they are warm, out of direct sunlight and have plenty of humidity and very little air circulation. Finding or creating the perfect environment is key to getting the most mushrooms out of your kit.
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Find a warm spot with indirect sunlight to place your box. If you've purchased thermometer/hygrometer, a temperature reading between 17°C and 21°C is ideal.
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Because Lion's mushrooms prefer 80-90% humidity and very little air flow, you will need to keep your kit inside of a humidity tent. Use any large plastic or compostable bag to loosely drape over your mushroom growing kit.
Step 5: Placing the Humidity Tent
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Lightly mist the inside of the bag or put a teaspoon of water inside the bag and then drain it to help create higher humidity.
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Place the damp humidity tent loosely over your colonised block so there is some airflow around the sides. Giving your Lion'sMane Mushroom access to airflow is important because too much Co2 can lead to a usual or coral-like growth pattern.
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Be sure to leave enough room for your mushroom to grow.
Step 6: Pinning
'Pinning' should begin within 3-6 weeks of initiating fruiting. If you haven't seen any pinning after 6 weeks please see our FAQ. As your mushroom develops it should start to form looser tendrils.
Step 7: Harvest
Harvest your mushrooms once they have developed teeth or tendrils. A white dust under your mushrooms means they have started to drop spores. Your mushrooms will be at their most tender if you harvest them before they sporate, but they'll still be perfectly delicious if you don't quite catch them in time. Just don't forget to wipe off your counter! To harvest, twist the whole bunch at the base and pull. Be sure that you have not left any mushroom stem attached to the substrate as this can inhibit the next flush.
Step 8: Initiating The Next Flush
Did you know that your box has the ability to produce several clusters or 'flushes' of mushrooms over time?
Return your kit to your chosen location and repeat steps 5-7. Times between flushes can vary from 3-9 weeks, so be patient and don't forget to keep the humidity up by misting. Your kit may flush several times, but the amount of mushrooms will reduce with each flush and the time between flushes will increase.
Step 9: What to do with your kit when it stops producing mushrooms
Did you know that fungi play a key role in storing carbon? Trees and plants remove carbon from the atmosphere and fungi break down plant waste to create new carbon-rich soil. Clean air, healthy soil and delicious mushrooms: just one of the many ways fungi are incredible!
Once your block has finished flushing, Once your block has finished flushing, you can compost the block and dispose of the fruiting bag in general waste.
We hope you've enjoyed growing your Lion's Mane mushrooms!
We're passionate about sharing the diversity of the fungi kingdom & making more of its edible & medicinal delights easy to grow. Want to try another strain or learn how to cultivate mushrooms? See our full range of mushroom growing kits and cultivation workshops!