• About
  • Archive
  • Contact
The Greening of Gavin
  • Home
  • Our Green Shop
    • Little Green Workshops
  • Green Workshops
    • Cheese Making
    • Soap Making
    • Soy Candle Making
  • eBooks
    • Clay Oven eBook
    • Keep Calm and Make Cheese eBook
  • Podcast
    • TGOG Podcast
    • TGoG Podcast Archive
    • Little Green Cheese
  • Vlog
  • Cheese
  • Green Living
    • Chickens
    • Gardening
    • Soap Making
    • Recipes
    • Climate Change
    • Peak Oil
    • Solar Power
  • Resources

White Button Mushroom Update

June 2, 2014 @ 20:46 By Gavin Webber 21 Comments

I would love to report that the white button mushrooms were growing thick and fast, but I can’t.

They simply didn’t grow after the whiskers appeared.

I am going to report this experiment as a failure.  It has been seven weeks since I prepared the Marvellous Mushroom kit from Mr Fothergills seeds.  Something should have happened by now.  The instructions suggest that growth will start at around the 21 day mark.

White Button Mushroom update

 

As you can see, the mushroom box is bare.  Not a single button, and all the whiskers of mycelium have vanished from the surface.

I am not sure what I did wrong, as I followed the instructions to the letter.  You can read how I prepared the kit in this post titled Growing Mushrooms – Preparation.

I had a dig around and found that the upper layer was moist, however the lower layer that the inoculated grains were mixed into was only just moist.  This may have had something to do with it, but then again I am only clutching at straws here.  I really don’t know what went wrong.

So instead of composting the lot, I am going to buy a couple of large field mushrooms from the green grocer that are getting a little bit old, and lay them gill side down on top of the dirt.  I am hoping that this will allow enough spores to grow and maybe we will get some mushrooms.  If anything happens, I will provide an update.

I am a little disappointed but not to worry.  At least I know that this is not an easy way to grow mushrooms.

So much for a white button mushroom update.  I would have loved to be frying up some of these beauties for breakfast by now, or cooking up a mushroom risotto for dinner.  Alas, it was not to be.

If any of you or anyone you know has had success with this product I would love to hear from you via comment.  It would help our little community learn a bit more about mushrooms.

Now I will begin to attempt to grow the shiitake mushrooms, as I still have that kit ready to go.  I will document this experiment as well to share with you all.

Better luck with this kit I hope!

Will this article help someone you know? If so help them out by sharing now!

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Skype (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)

Related

Filed Under: Gardening, vegetables

← So Quiet Wooden Watch by Jord – Giveaway →

About Gavin Webber

Gavin Webber's daily goal is to live a more sustainable lifestyle, in an effort to reduce his family's environmental footprint so we can all make a difference for our children & future generations to come.

Learn more about him here and connect with him on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+.

Comments

  1. Sharon says

    June 2, 2014 at 21:41

    Bummer, grab some compost from a mushroom farm and they pop up everywhere.

    Reply
    • Gavin Webber says

      June 4, 2014 at 05:56

      I might give that a go Sharon

      Reply
  2. rabidlittlehippy says

    June 2, 2014 at 21:57

    There’s not mush room for my bad jokes here Gav. 😉 I know nothing abourt growing mushies but I have read somewhere (probably Milkwood) that some mushies need a shock to get them fruiting. If it was a solid box I’d say give it a good old kick and see if that wakes them up perhaps. Bugger it didn’t work though. I know there’s a mushie farm out at Parwan (south of Bacchus Marsh) I’m keen to visit sometime for some spent mushroom compost if they have it available. 🙂

    Reply
    • Gavin Webber says

      June 4, 2014 at 05:57

      Hi Jessie, can you send me the address via email? Keen to grow some come hell or high water.

      Reply
  3. Lynda says

    June 2, 2014 at 22:29

    Sorry Gav, no advice, i failed with mushy kits as well. Building up my beds with mushroom compost next weekend but its never given me mushys before.

    Reply
  4. Marijke Van der Vlist says

    June 3, 2014 at 07:52

    Inspired by your post I started a box with the same spores, for once reading the directions (and following them!). They get thoroughly watered daily with a fine sprinkler, but no muchies for me either. When I started it was started to cool down to perfect temperatures. Only to go back to a summery 27 degrees the weeks after that, they don’t get sun and wouldn’t gotten that warm under the deck, but I thought my fault lay there. I’ve grown them before from a box kit in much rougher circumstances and had beautiful mushrooms with that. Might be the spores…

    Reply
    • Gavin Webber says

      June 4, 2014 at 05:59

      Sorry to hear that it didn’t work for you either Marijke. I will be sending an email to Mr Fothergills is in order to let them know of our collective mishap.

      Reply
  5. nanangofarmerliz says

    June 3, 2014 at 08:28

    That’s a shame, I was hoping to learn as I’ve had no success either

    Reply
  6. pam says

    June 3, 2014 at 08:57

    I am with the others. We have had no luck in the mushroom growing and had had to accept that they are one of the few things that we have to buy

    Reply
  7. Catherine says

    June 3, 2014 at 16:08

    What a pity nothing grew. Looking forward to your experiment with using mushrooms from the green grocer.

    Reply
    • Alex says

      June 4, 2014 at 20:17

      I bought a kit and followed the instructions to no avail. After a month I got frustrated and gave it heaps of water and put in a dark, cold area under the house. Now I have 2 mushies!

      Reply
      • Gavin Webber says

        June 4, 2014 at 21:38

        Thanks Alex. I did exactly that as well. I gave the medium a good soaking and covered it back up. Maybe something will happen eventually.

        Gav

  8. Paul Andrew says

    June 6, 2014 at 09:04

    it’s sad to hear the same fate with your mushies, seems to be the norm with these kits! we’ve tried them and followed the directions but no mushrooms either 🙁
    interested to see how your query goes with mr fothergills and if you can rectify the non-result!

    Reply
  9. Mary says

    June 6, 2014 at 09:06

    Hi Gavin, I haven’t used Mr Fothergills, but my Mum used to use the mushroom kits available in the 1990’s – always kept them in a corner of the bathroom and I can’t remember a failure. Maybe the humidity from hot showers helped?

    Reply
  10. Tara says

    January 20, 2015 at 14:44

    Hi Gavin, I was really interested to read about your attempts with Mr Fothergills mushrooms! My partner and I are mycologists and are experimenting with growing mushrooms. Knowing the complexity of the process we were very interested to see Mr Fothergills for sale and we bought a few varieties out of interest. I think I may know why they seem to not produce mycelium or fruit. I tried to take a culture from the spawn that was provided in the golden oyster and pink oysters and found that they were contaminated with what seemed to be Rhizopus mold. This is a very fast growing variety of mold so I attempted to inhibit its growth to see if that allowed the oyster culture to get going (oyster mushrooms are also fast growers). After multiple attempts in the lab to find the oyster cultures in the spawn I have given up. In order for this mushroom growing process to work the culture on the spawn must be very abundant in order to out grow any contaminants or other molds in the soil.
    I hope you have some luck with growing mushrooms! Home grown gourmet mushrooms are delicious!

    Reply
    • Gavin Webber says

      January 20, 2015 at 15:21

      Thanks Tara. That certainly explains a lot. I do still have a packet of Shitaki spores that I am yet to use, so might still give it a go by using the instructions they gave me. If that doesn’t work, I will send a letter to Mr F and let them know that their product is not as expected, and see what they do about it.

      Reply
  11. Dave says

    October 5, 2015 at 11:20

    Tried on elf the Mr Fothergill’s kits too and nothing. I will be asking for a replacement!

    Reply
  12. Mitch boerner says

    November 22, 2015 at 18:48

    Mine is great!! So it didn’t grow for about a month, i had it outside under a table its about 20c – 25c here everyday i gave it water via a misting bottle. Nothing.

    I moved it to an area outside away from direct sunlight and poured about 500ml of water over the top of it, left it for 3 days…… Ladies and gentlemen we have mushrooms……. Shoot me an email if you have any other questions.

    mitch.boerner@gmail.com

    Reply
  13. Al. says

    November 30, 2015 at 12:39

    Total waste of time. Mine grew the white mould thru the boards and were looking good. Within a day that was replaced with grey green and black mould that was obviously not supposed to be there. Not a mushy in sight. Don’t waste your money.

    Reply
  14. kim says

    January 28, 2016 at 23:11

    I have had great success and continual mushroom explosions. I opened the packet of mulchy stuff, spread it over. Waited a couple of days till it went a whitish colour then got a cup and poured water over it (didnt mist it at all cos i dont have a spray bottle and too lazy to get one), put it in the bottom of my pantry in the dark and I’m not joking you… ive had non stop mushroom. Ive gpt about 100 pinhead mushys starting to grow. And if you leave them they go HUGE.

    Reply
  15. Sam Alexander says

    April 24, 2016 at 15:44

    I failed with those kits too 🙁 I succeeded with the dowels in straw… although the guy who used to supply the dowels to CERES stopped. Keep on keeping on Gav.

    Reply

Comments build lively communities. Let me know your thoughts, but keep it clean and green! Spam is removed instantly. Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Search This Blog

Follow my work

About Gavin Webber

About Gavin Webber

An Ordinary Australian Man Who Has A Green Epiphany Whilst Watching A Documentary, Gets a Hybrid Car, Plants A Large Organic Vegetable Garden, Goes Totally Solar, Lowers Consumption, Feeds Composts Bins and Worms, Harvests Rainwater, Raises Chickens, Makes Cheese and Soap, and Eats Locally. All In The Effort To Reduce Our Family's Carbon Footprint So We Can Start Making A Difference For Our Children & Future Generations To Come.

Delve Into the Archives

Visit Our Online Simple Living Shop

Little Green Workshops

Latest Podcast Episode

Subscribe on iTunes

Top Posts & Pages

How To Remove Scaly Leg Mites
Strawbridge Family Inspiration
Grow Food Not Lawns - 4 Reasons Why You Should Dig Up Your Lawn
The Seven Stages Of Change
Selling Your Own Soap in Australia
Clay Oven eBook Off to the Proof Reader
Building a Wicking Bed on Concrete
Repeat After Me. I Will Never Plant Potatoes With Pumpkins Again
Quince Paste
Connecting Two Rainwater Tanks

Recent Awards

Recent Awards

Local Green Hero

Categories

Favourite Daily Reads

Debt Free, Cashed Up, and Laughing

The Off-Grid Solar House

Greener Me

The Rogue Ginger

Little Eco Footprints

Down To Earth

Surviving the Suburbs

Little Green Cheese

Eight Acres

The Witches Kitchen

TGOG Readers On-line

Podcast Reviews

  • Always inspiring and entertaining!
    August 4, 2016 by floriographer from Australia

    I've crowed about Gavin's podcast before but I just have to recommend it once again - I love that he shares his learning as well as his successes - it helps the rest of us try try try again! Thanks Gavin!

  • ms
    July 22, 2016 by Ketaea12 from New Zealand

    I really enjoy listening to Gavin, he has a kind lovely voice. He covers some great relevant topics for the everyday greenie. With lots of tips or how to or what not to do. Thanks Gavin, love it!!

  • Well worth your time to tune in
    October 23, 2015 by A Vision Splendid from Australia

    I can highly recommend Gavin’s podcast ! I have followed Gavin’s blog since the very beginning and have loved to see his journey unfold. Gavin has a lovely speaking voice so this podcast is always very easy to listen to. Gavin has a very authentic approach to his green living lifestyle. He shares the ups and downs but always provides motivation and practical steps that we can all implement.

  • very good
    June 28, 2015 by Scared pax from United Kingdom

    This is a great podcast if you want to improve your life in so many aspects and become a more sustainable person. I love the soothing voice, the good pace, and it contains lots of useful information. Recommended!

  • opened my eyes
    May 25, 2015 by Gorn4lyfe from Australia

    A wonderful show!

  • Inspiring
    April 30, 2015 by Alan Whelan from Ireland

    This is a great podcast if you're looking for practical info on saving money by living more sustainably from someone who's made that journey over the last few years. Told in a nice, easy conversational style

  • Green Living, inspiring and practical
    January 8, 2015 by EliseMac from Australia

    Thanks Gav for sharing what has (and hasn't) worked along your journey for living a greener lifestyle. Inspiring and achievable for anyone, I look forward to this podcast weekly.

  • Local food equals less waste
    December 27, 2014 by allotmentadventureswithjean from Australia

    Another brilliant podcast from Gavin Webber encouraging us, and showing us how, to cut down on food miles, growing our own food, and cutting down on food waste. Gavin is a really interesting speaker, showing us how to eat better, growing our own food and how to live more sustainably.

  • Honestly australian
    December 15, 2014 by HodgepodgeOz from Australia

    Fantastic podcast, with a wide variety of well thought and researched topics. Gavin is a honest, forthright pod aster with a genuine interest in helping others get green. Like a day alongside is a day wasted, so too is a week without listening to Gavin. Highly recommended for people starting out, or those in the midst of their new lifestyle. Keep it up Gavin, wish there were more great reviews! Kimberley

  • Morning motivation
    December 8, 2014 by Bunnyworm from Australia

    Gavin has a great passion for living this greener lifestyle that motivates others to do the same. The podcasts are always interesting and informative. :)

  • Passionate Advocate
    October 18, 2014 by BoomOpGirl from Australia

    Gavin's enthusiasm and passion for creating a more sustainable world is nothing short of contagious. Thanks Gav, you are my weekly source of motivation for living a sustainable life! :)

  • Gavin speaks from the heart
    October 13, 2014 by Green gavin from Australia

    Gavin's podcasts are required listening for anyone planning to live a more sustainable life. He doesn't preach, but tells you his story from the heart. You'll laugh, smile, share in his concerns and along the way you'll pick up some great tips on living a simple life.

  • Green thoughts, so well iterated
    October 9, 2014 by Kwasikwami from Australia

    This is a wonderful podcast. Not only does Gavin talk knowledgeably on a range of sustainability topics from gardening tips all the way to the issues facing humanity as a whole, but he does so in such a wonderful voice, it's like listening to my Dad, love it!!

  • Easy listening inspiration on being green
    September 24, 2014 by Broomedy from Australia

    Gav knows how to share his journey to a more sustainable life in a manner that shows just how easy it really is. Not to mention healthier, economically beneficial and generally rewarding. The podcasts are an easy way to absorb Gav's great lifestyle. I recommend to anyone.

  • Thanks Gavin!
    August 31, 2014 by Honeywoodmilk from Australia

    Great practical advice for a greener lifestyle. This podcast is for anybody interested in growing their own food in suburbia, saving electricity, brewing beer, making cheese, all that wonderful business and most of all, saving money! Thanks Gavin, love the podcast mate!

  • Enjoyed those ideas for staying warm
    August 15, 2014 by enduringdragon from United States

    Like you we are having winter here in Chile—brrr! Every bit we can save on heating we will.

  • Green Podcasts
    July 26, 2014 by Carneu from Australia

    Excellent podcasts, which are full of information to help get started on a sustainable lifestyle.

  • Practical ideas and inspiration
    July 19, 2014 by HeathrowHeath from Australia

    I highly recommend Gavin's podcast and blog. Down to earth, entertaining and inspirational. Thank you.

  • Interesting & easy to listen to
    April 27, 2014 by Velocity3 from New Zealand

    Gavin & his guests make this green journey lots of fun.

  • Great green listen
    April 18, 2014 by Obscurenickname from Australia

    Gavin is a great down to earth, tell it like it is aussie with a passion for sustainability and growing food and making cheese

Carbon Offset website

Copyright - Gavin Webber © 2023