Mushroom Spores vs. Spawn: What is the Difference? (2024)

FAQs

Mushroom Spores vs. Spawn: What is the Difference? ›

Following spore germination, mushroom spawn is the next step in the fungal life cycle prior to mushroom development. Spawn is the commercial term for mycelium colonizing a prepared substrate, such as straw, wood chips, or sawdust, and forms the backbone of all large-scale mushroom growing operations.

Seeds (and spores for that matter!) are a genetic grab-bag dependent on two individual sets of genetic material, while spawn is a single genetic culture that can be propagated indefinitely from the same 'master'. The 'master' cultures are kept on agar petri dishes in our laboratory.

Mycelium is the feeding stage of the mushroom, and it can grow for years, even decades, under the right conditions. In short, mushroom spores are the reproductive cells of the mushroom, while mycelium is the vegetative, nutrient-absorbing stage of the mushroom's life cycle.

Once the spores have generated a well-established growth of fungus, the fungus culture can be transferred to grains. Placing mushroom spores onto a sterile medium to start the fungal growth and then transferring the culture to millet seeds is a good way to make oyster mushroom spawn.

Among the fungi, spores serve a function analogous to that of seeds in plants. Produced and released by specialized fruiting bodies, such as the edible portion of the familiar mushrooms, fungal spores germinate and grow into new individuals under suitable conditions of moisture, temperature, and food availability.

A typical single spore germinates into a monokaryotic mycelium, which cannot reproduce sexually; when two compatible monokaryotic mycelia join and form a dikaryotic mycelium, that mycelium may form fruiting bodies such as mushrooms.

Collecting spores

A mature mushroom is said to contain up to 16 billion spores and so this gives plenty of opportunities to propagate. It is relatively easy but quite time consuming to collect your own spores as all you need is a mushroom (but make sure it's a known edible variety), some paper and glass.

Mushroom spores suspended in sterile water inside of a syringe are called spore syringes. Both can be used to cultivate mushrooms by injecting a portion of the syringe into a sterilized grain bag which colonizes and can then be transferred to sterile substrates such as manure, straw, or sawdust.

Spores of most fruit and vegetable pathogens can germinate in pure water or water with low nutrient concentrations, transferred from the host surface to the water by osmosis or supplied to the spores by injured and battered cells in the wound region, the typical court of infection for many postharvest pathogens.

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How long does mushroom spawn last? ›

Refrigerate the spawn if not using within a few days. Sawdust spawn can be stored for up to 3 months if refrigerated. Leaving spawn at room temperature for too long can result in mushroom growth inside of the bag which can affect the way the spawn handles in tools, plus there may be some vigor loss.

Colonization occurs after inoculation. This is when the mycelium will start to take over the grain that was inoculated with spores. This period usually lasts between 3 to 6 weeks depending on strain and environmental conditions. Ideal conditions for this phase are in a dark place and temperature between 72 F – 80 F.

After about 4-8 weeks, you should start to see mycelium growing on the substrate. You'll notice the white mycelium growing outward from the point of injection. When the mycelium has grown three to four inches, without opening the bag, carefully break up the colonized substrate and mix it into the uncolonized substrate.

Heat and UV Light: High temperatures (above 140°F) and UV light effectively destroy mushroom spores by breaking down their structure. Chemical Agents: Bleach, hydrogen peroxide, vinegar, baking soda, and dish soap are potent chemicals that kill spores through oxidation and pH alteration.

One spore is enough

A mycelium is a network of fungal threads or hyphae. Mycelia often grow underground but can also thrive in other places such as rotting tree trunks. A single spore can develop into a mycelium. The fruiting bodies of fungi, such as mushrooms, can sprout from a mycelium.

Mushrooms are packed with nutrients and offer a range of health benefits. Generally, if the mushroom is safe to eat, so are the spores, though getting a bowl-full of just spores might be a good way to start sneezing—airborne spores can trigger allergies in some people.

Mushroom spawn is a substrate that already has mycelium growing on it. Mycelium, or actively growing mushroom culture, is placed on growth substrate to seed or introduce mushrooms to grow on a substrate. This is also known as inoculation, spawning or adding spawn.

Spores are often the dusty, colored part of a fungus that is easily moved in the wind or in water. Fruiting bodies are fungal structures that contain spores. They come in many sizes, shapes, and colors, all of which aid in identification of the specific fungus.

Mushroom spores are very small and can only be seen individually with a microscope. On a mature mushroom, many thousands of spores grow on just one gill or on a small piece of a mushroom. In order to see a group of spores and also the color of the spores, we can make a spore print.