Blewit (Lespista nuda) Cultivation

This grow kit is designed to give you a fun scientific experience in addition to delicious edible mushrooms. It’s made up of living mycelium, substrate, and water. It’s intended to be used for outside cultivation.

The blewit (Lepista nuda) is an excellent edible with a floral scent. The mushroom is lilac colored and has a diameter of 4 to 20 cm. It's bulbous foot measures 3 to 10 cm and has a diameter of 1 to 3 cm, which makes it a compact mushroom. Its narrow blades are lilac colored and the color fades with time. Its spores are pinkish white.

Instructions

Before starting, wait until the substrate is fully colonized; the pinkish-white mycelium should almost reach the bottom of the bag.

1. Choose the location

The grow kit contains enough mycelium to cover an area of 1 m2 to a depth of 15-30 cm. Cultivation should be done in an accessible, humid, well-drained area with little sunlight, sheltered from the wind. Areas under shrubs and trees are suitable.

2. Propagate

Propagate from May to October. The blewit grows on substrate composed of 1 part hardwood shavings to 2 parts dead leaves, or 4 parts manure to 1 part straw (by volume). Dig a plot of about 1 m² and 30 cm deep. Place a layer of newspaper or cardboard on the chosen plot. Place alternating layers of substrate and mycelium to reach a thickness of 30 cm. Finish with a layer of substrate. Water abundantly. Cover with 5 cm of garden soil and water.

3. Care

Water regularly to maintain a level of humidity comparable to that of a vegetable garden.

4. Harvest

The blewit fruits from late summer to late fall at temperatures between 13 and 20°C. If the conditions are favorable, the first mushrooms will be harvested after a few months, or even a few weeks, especially if the propagation is done in spring. If the propagation is done in the fall, it will be necessary to wait until the following year for the first harvest. Mushrooms grow in clusters following a rain or a heavy watering. The mushrooms are picked by turning the stem. Adding 10 cm of substrate in the spring and fall will promote recurrent fruitings.

Be certain of the identity of the mushrooms you are consuming. As a general rule, mushrooms should be cooked before eating.

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