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Still not sure if the crop matches the price though. It definitely fun and maybe that's worth the money. Mine was a pressie so I didn't know how much they cost

maggienetball wrote:It certainly worked for me, but I wonder if it wouldn't have cost less to buy the mushrooms.

I was thinking the same thing, but it's just really cool to watch them grow!

Boots wrote:I can get kits sent up and figure I will, to get the initial spores - but can anyone advise me on extending the growing beyond the life of the kit? Is it just a case of feeding the soil and they keep going?

Getting back to the original post of this thread which is how I found this site in the first place...

My kit is doing great but I'm wondering if anyone has any hints on how to keep the kit going so I don't have to buy the whole kit again. What can I add to keep them growing past what the directions say. This is what might make it worth while rather than just buying some from the supermarket. Anyone?

Try letting a few mushrooms over ripen so they are fully open when you pick them. I think it lets the spores out but I could be wrong.

Then redampen the soil when all are collected and increase the heat (I put mine back in the airing cupboard) for 10 days - checking for moisture levels. They need to be damp.

Then back into the cool again and watch them crop. Takes a shorter time 2 nd time around but crop is less. Watering is important but I water with luke warm water.

I got 3 good crops out of 1 box. The 4th time I got 2 mushrooms - don't think 2 is a crop!

I'm currently growing regular and oyster mushrooms out of a kit and it is working well, if not spectacularly.

Have a look at my blog if you're interested:
http://plot101.wordpress.com/?s=mushroom

I plan to put the used kits in more compost (mushrooms) and more straw (oyster mushrooms) and hope to have some more harvests out of them before having to buy new kits or spawn.

Jandra

Update on my kit - I have three mushrooms growing... They look lovely, but I'd like a few more!