In winter, in the forest under the snow, you can meet winter mushrooms. These are delicious and healthy mushrooms. But it is irrational to follow them into the forest, since there are not so many such mushrooms growing. It is much easier to grow them at home yourself.
This fungus grows from September to April when the outside temperature is below 15 ° C. You can find it on bushes and stumps of deciduous trees. The color of the honey agaric cap can be different – honey, light orange, brown with a tinge of red. The diameter of the cap is 3-8 cm. In a young mushroom, the edges of the cap are bent inward, but with age they straighten. The pulp is pale yellow with a mild mushroom aroma, sometimes the smell resembles a fishy one.
Winter mushrooms can be grown in a glass jar
The taste of mushrooms is soft, pleasant, slightly sour. This makes the product an excellent ingredient for pies, stews, gravies and other dishes. However, it is appreciated not only for its taste, but also for its benefits. The chemical composition is rich in healing substances. It is believed that mushrooms of this species stop the growth of cancer cells.
Before growing mushrooms, you need to prepare a special substrate. It consists of bran and sawdust in a ratio of 1: 3. You can also mix in 1: 1 proportions sawdust with herbal additives, such as buckwheat husks. Then proceed according to the scheme:
- Soak the substrate in water for a day, squeeze it out and fill it in half a three-liter glass jar.
- Use a long, thick rod to make several deep holes in the substrate.
- Sterilize the jars by placing them in a container of water and boiling for 2 hours. Repeat the procedure the next day.
- Cool the jars to 25 ° C, cover them with nylon lids and make several holes in the lids with a diameter of about 2 cm.
- Place the mycelium through the holes in the substrate. It should be approximately 5% by weight of the substrate.
- For about a month before germination, remove the jars in a dark place with a temperature of 20-24 ° C.
- Move the cans to the north window or take them out onto the balcony. Remove the lid when the mushrooms have grown to it. Wrap a wide strip of cardboard around the neck to keep the crop from spilling out to the sides.
- Spray the cardboard and mushroom caps periodically.
You can harvest on the 10th day after germination. Thus, the whole process will take you a little over a month.
Now you know what interesting winter mushrooms are. Grow them at home in regular jars and enjoy all kinds of dishes based on them.