Instructions 

Chicken of the Woods 

          Chicken of the Woods grow best outdoors in areas shielded from direct sun.

To create a raised mushroom bed, lay out a border at least 10 inches high made of cinder blocks, brick or wood. You want about one square foot per 100 grams of spawn. 

For the Chicken of the Woods mushroom kit, it should be planted in a mushroom bed with at least 4 inches of hardwood wood chips or straw. The addition of partially-buried logs will make your mushroom bed even more appealing for the Chicken of the Woods fungus. Chicken of the Woods is an aggressive fungus that will attack and possibly kill nearby trees, especially oak and hardwoods. Care should be taken when planting this fungus as nearby roots and trees will weaken in its presence under normal conditions.

Spread your spore inoculate over the area and cover it up with 2 inches of wet chips/straw. Mist more water on your bed, and continue to keep the area moist.

After a few weeks, a white/brownish layer of fungus may appear on top of the compost. This is called mycelium, and it’s the basis for your mushrooms. Eventually, mushroom stalks should appear.

If you let some of your mushrooms keep growing, they’ll deposit their spores in your garden, and you’ll be finding mushrooms in all kinds of places next year. It’s up to you whether or not you want this. At the end of the summer, cover your mushroom bed with 2-4 inches of fresh wood chips – the mushrooms should return in the next year.