Wholesale Shiitake Mushroom

01.
A Bit Of Botany

a bit of botanical information on shiitake mushrooms

Shiitake mushrooms belong to the Marasmiaceae family. They are a type of saprophytic fungus that naturally grows on decaying hardwood trees, particularly oak. The fruiting body features a broad, brown, umbrella-shaped cap with white gills on the underside, and a sturdy, fibrous stem. Caps typically range from 5 to 15 cm in diameter. In the wild, shiitakes emerge from logs in humid, shaded environments, and their mycelium network spreads through the wood, breaking down lignin and cellulose as they grow.

Nomenclature

"Shiitake" comes from the Japanese words shii, referring to the tree that they grow on (Castanopsis cuspidata), and take, meaning mushroom. Shiitakes are sometimes also referred to as oak mushrooms or black forest mushrooms.

02.
Where In The World

habitat and range for shiitake mushroom

Shiitake mushrooms are native to the warm, temperate forests of East Asia. They naturally occur in regions of China, Japan, and Korea, as well as parts of Southeast Asia such as Vietnam and Thailand.

03.
Cultivation & Harvesting

considerations for growing and harvesting shiitake mushrooms

Shiitake mushrooms grow best on hardwood logs like oak or chestnut, or on sterilized sawdust blocks in controlled environments. After inoculation, logs take 6–12 months to colonize, while sawdust blocks can fruit in as little as 8–12 weeks. Once the mushrooms begin to fruit, they need consistent moisture, shade, and humidity, and can be harvested when the caps are fully expanded but still slightly curled under; a single log can continue producing mushrooms for several years.

04.
The Rest of the Story

Shiitake Mushroom history, folklore, literature & more

Shiitake mushrooms have been cultivated for over 1,000 years and were once considered so valuable in Japan that they were offered as a gift to emperors.

Shiitake mushrooms contain naturally occurring chitin which is a structural polysaccharide found in the cell walls of fungi, including shiitakes, as well as in the exoskeletons of insects and crustaceans. It helps provide rigidity and strength to the mushroom’s structure.