Plug spawn is mycelium grown out on birch furniture dowels, which can be easily tapped into holes drilled in logs. Our dowels are 5/16 in diameter and 1 inch long. Plug spawns are great for small projects because they're easy to use, don't require special tools, and come in small quantities. Use an 8.5 mm drill with a stop (or a 5/16" drill with an attachable stop ring) to drill the hole in the log and hammer it in. Once the log is inoculated, the inoculation site is sealed with wax to prevent the plug spawn from drying out. Plug spawn is a good option for growers who are inoculating 20 or fewer logs each year. Getting 100 or 500 counts of plug spawn allows you to play with a variety of species and have a small amount of logs. Plugs are a little bit more expensive than sawdust spawn and take slightly longer to colonize.
Our Mushroom Plug Spawn Products
Plug spawn is the most basic way to grow mushrooms on logs. If you are just starting to grow mushrooms, plug spawn is the easiest strain to handle and inoculate logs with. If you only want a few logs of any one species, or if you are a commercial grower who wants an easy way to handle strains, plug spawn may be best for you.
Applications of Mushroom Plug Spawn
Use to inoculate natural logs for shiitake, oyster, lion's mane, comb mushrooms, reishi, slider mushrooms, olive oysters, chestnuts, and turkey tail mushrooms.
Characteristics of Mushroom Sawdust Spawn
- Our plug spawn product is so durable that it can be used for fall inoculation in cold climates, stump inoculation, and overseas shipping.
- It's easy for beginners to work with and is not susceptible to operator changes.
- Retains moisture well; does not dry out quickly.
- Has a longer shelf life (in the refrigerator) than sawdust strains.
- It is also a reliable medium for carrying slower growing fungal species. Because it spawns in smaller "doses" (due to its smaller size), it takes nearly 30% longer to colonize logs than thimble or sawdust spawns - unless the inoculum rate is increased.
- It is slightly more expensive than sawdust spawn at the same inoculation rate, but it is an excellent spawn choice for small projects, beginners, and culturing in cold or dry climates.
Lifeasible offers high-quality mushroom plug spawn products. Our plug spawns are grown in a sterile lab and produced year-round to ensure you get fresh mycelium. Since each mushroom has its own specific needs, we recommend contact us for more detailed growing information.
For research use only, not for clinical use.
