Maitake (Grifola frondosa) can be found growing wild at the base of stumps or dying oak trees in eastern Canada. These rosettes of smoky brown wavy caps with white porous undersides are also called “Hen of the Woods” (not to be confused with Chicken of the Woods). **Maitake cultivation on logs is still experimental. Best results are achieved through “pre-treating” freshly cut oak logs before inoculation, and partially burying the logs once colonized.**
“Pre-treat” the log by pressure cooking, steaming, or boiling the fresh oak logs for 1-4h, then let cool.
Drill holes about 25mm (1″) deep into freshly harvested conifer log using 8mm (5/16″) drill bit and depth stop. If you are drilling holes many logs, consider our specialized high speed mushroom drill bit and angle grinder adapter to make the task faster and easier.
Tap maitake plug spawn into holes with hammer, then cover with melted wax using a dauber. For detailed instructions on how to inoculate your log, click here.
Raise your mushroom log on bricks to avoid contact with soil, and store in a shady location open to the rain. For optimal growth, rehydrate your log during extended dry periods by submerging overnight in water. After 4-6 months, when you seen evidence of mycelium growing in the cut edge of the log, bury in a shady location leaving about 2 inches above the soil surface. Now sit back and let nature do her thing.
Typically heavy rains in the late summer and early fall will stimulate your log to make mushrooms. Sometimes nature doesn’t provide enough rain and you can supplement with heavy watering. Patience is required as it can take a year or more for the first mushrooms to form, but after that your log will produce seasonally for many years.
100 plugs will plant ~2 logs* (~100g of wax will seal 100 plugs)
500 plugs will plant ~10 logs* (~454g of wax will seal 500 plugs)
*Based on an average log size of 40 inches long by 4 inches in diameter.
Ecology: Weakly parasitic on living oaks and other hardwoods in eastern Canada; also saprobic on decaying wood; causing a white butt rot; fruiting near the bases of trees; often reappearing in the same place in subsequent years; summer and fall.
Fruiting Body: 15–40 cm across; 10–30 cm high; composed of multiple caps in a rosette, sharing a branched, stemlike structure.
Individual Caps: 3–14 cm across; more or less fan-shaped or deltoid; dark to pale gray-brown (often with vague concentric zones); yellowing with old age; finely velvety or bald; with wavy margins.
Pore Surface: Running down the stem, often nearly to the base; lavender gray when young, becoming white and, with age, staining yellowish; not bruising; with 1–3 angular to slot-like or nearly tooth-like pores per mm; tubes 1–3 mm deep.
Stem Structure: Branched; whitish; tough; often off-center.
Flesh: Firm; white; unchanging when sliced.
Odor and Taste: Mild; pleasant.
Chemical Reactions: KOH negative on flesh and surfaces. Iron salts negative on cap and flesh.
Spore Print: White.
For peak viability we recommend using your mushroom products within weeks, and storing in a cool location until use. Refrigeration between 2-4C is ideal for the longest shelf-life. Even when refrigerated, the fungal mycelium continues to grow, and eventually mushrooms burst out one way or another.
After harvesting you should store the mushrooms in a paper bag, which allows them to breathe. Leave them in the main part of the refrigerator to get good airflow, not the produce drawer. They will keep for a couple of days when stored in a paper bag in the refrigerator and can be frozen for extended use.
When cooked, Maitake mushrooms are succulent, semi-firm, and chewy with a woodsy, earthy, and spicy flavor. These mushrooms are used around the world in many different culinary applications and are also used in traditional medicines for their high nutritional content.
Maitake mushrooms are best suited for both raw and roasting, grilling, baking, frying, sautéing, and stir-frying. When used fresh, Maitake mushrooms can be crumbled and tossed into leafy green salads or sprinkled over soups. When cooked, Maitake mushrooms are mixed into stir-fries with other fall vegetables, boiled in stews and soups, tossed into pasta, sprinkled over pizza, or cooked into omelets. They can also be sautéed in butter and served as a stand-alone side dish or baked into a mushroom thyme cheesecake. In addition to cooking, Maitake mushrooms can be frozen, cooked or raw, and can be dried and ground into a powder used to flavor meatloaf, Italian dishes, and sauces such as béchamel, cream, or marinara. The tough base of the mushrooms can also be cooked to make a flavorful stock. Maitake mushrooms pair well with other wild mushrooms, bitter greens, shallot, garlic, thyme, potatoes, cheese such as parmesan and gruyere, eggs, bacon, shellfish, beef, anchovies, vinegar, and cream.
Miso Beef Burgers with Daikon Oroshi
Roasted Maitake Mushrooms in Sesame Miso Broth
Beetroot & Maitake Stew with Turmeric Quinoa
Grilled Thai Marinated Maitake Mushrooms
Soba and Maitake Mushrooms in Soy Broth
Maitake mushrooms are an excellent source of potassium, fiber, copper, amino acids, beta-glucans, antioxidants, and vitamins B and C. Maitake mushrooms are used medicinally as an immune system booster and are used in tea, taken in capsule form, or are consumed in a liquid concentrate.
Maitake (Grifola frondosa) can be found growing wild at the base of stumps or dying oak trees in eastern Canada. These rosettes of smoky brown wavy caps with white porous undersides are also called “Hen of the Woods” (not to be confused with Chicken of the Woods). **Maitake cultivation on logs is still experimental. Best results are achieved through “pre-treating” freshly cut oak logs before inoculation, and partially burying the logs once colonized.**
“Pre-treat” the log by pressure cooking, steaming, or boiling the fresh oak logs for 1-4h, then let cool.
Drill holes about 25mm (1″) deep into freshly harvested conifer log using 8mm (5/16″) drill bit and depth stop. If you are drilling holes many logs, consider our specialized high speed mushroom drill bit and angle grinder adapter to make the task faster and easier.
Tap maitake plug spawn into holes with hammer, then cover with melted wax using a dauber. For detailed instructions on how to inoculate your log, click here.
Raise your mushroom log on bricks to avoid contact with soil, and store in a shady location open to the rain. For optimal growth, rehydrate your log during extended dry periods by submerging overnight in water. After 4-6 months, when you seen evidence of mycelium growing in the cut edge of the log, bury in a shady location leaving about 2 inches above the soil surface. Now sit back and let nature do her thing.
Typically heavy rains in the late summer and early fall will stimulate your log to make mushrooms. Sometimes nature doesn’t provide enough rain and you can supplement with heavy watering. Patience is required as it can take a year or more for the first mushrooms to form, but after that your log will produce seasonally for many years.
100 plugs will plant ~2 logs* (~100g of wax will seal 100 plugs)
500 plugs will plant ~10 logs* (~454g of wax will seal 500 plugs)
*Based on an average log size of 40 inches long by 4 inches in diameter.
Ecology: Weakly parasitic on living oaks and other hardwoods in eastern Canada; also saprobic on decaying wood; causing a white butt rot; fruiting near the bases of trees; often reappearing in the same place in subsequent years; summer and fall.
Fruiting Body: 15–40 cm across; 10–30 cm high; composed of multiple caps in a rosette, sharing a branched, stemlike structure.
Individual Caps: 3–14 cm across; more or less fan-shaped or deltoid; dark to pale gray-brown (often with vague concentric zones); yellowing with old age; finely velvety or bald; with wavy margins.
Pore Surface: Running down the stem, often nearly to the base; lavender gray when young, becoming white and, with age, staining yellowish; not bruising; with 1–3 angular to slot-like or nearly tooth-like pores per mm; tubes 1–3 mm deep.
Stem Structure: Branched; whitish; tough; often off-center.
Flesh: Firm; white; unchanging when sliced.
Odor and Taste: Mild; pleasant.
Chemical Reactions: KOH negative on flesh and surfaces. Iron salts negative on cap and flesh.
Spore Print: White.
