Bouquet Goals

I have a list. I give myself a badge every time I fruit a new type of mushroom. It's a pretty frustrating approach, since most of the species I try don't fruit at all.

So I actually have a better system.

Some mushrooms really seem to need 'courting behaviors' to get them to grow. They can be real teases, if you know what I mean. Don't get me wrong; some are quite aggressive. They'll give it all away from the first plug. Oyster mushrooms will fruit unannounced when you haven't even gone on one date. Wood blewits...not so much. They won't fruit until they've had time to think about it and at least one cold snap. They need their substrate to be just right; not too compacted or too dry and a proper mix of several ingredients. Even then, sometimes they stand you up. Then there's the mycorrhizal mushrooms...

My first love was Lactarius Indigo, the indigo milk cap. Something about the depth of its color just entranced me; finding a mushroom this blue seemed impossible to me. The bigger tease is the fact that you can't just grow it on dead stuff. I was dubious when I was first told that these mushrooms couldn't be cultivated, but the more people I talked to, the more I realized that the mystery of mycorrhizal mushrooms is far from being solved.

Morels, chanterelles, truffles and chaga are some well-known mushrooms that are thought to be impossible to cultivate. Many have tried, and some efforts have even been successful! There are several secret formulas for substrate that will fruit Morels. Still, the science behind the conditions required to fruit mycorrhizal mushrooms is quite lacking.

This year, I think a realistic but challenging goal would be the wood blewit. It's a purple mushroom. That doesn't get you high. I know, shocking, right?

Anyway, it's notoriously tricky to cultivate. The mycelium will spread somewhat easily, but it is said that you only get fruiting bodies if you create a substrate that is just the right texture. Should be an interesting challenge.

If I am wildly successful, I'd like to also post an image of myself with a little basket of other outdoor fruiting mushrooms, especially wine caps and brick caps. I would consider myself exceedingly lucky to succeed at that this year...but as culinary farmers, thyme is all we have.

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