Manual: Wine Cap Spawn

Growing wine caps (Stropharia rugosoannulata, also known as wine cap or garden giant) is an easy and fun way to grow tasty mushrooms in your garden. This mushroom grows on woody material in an outdoor bed and also contributes to a healthier garden soil.

Use the spawn as soon as possible after you receive it, or keep it cool for a few weeks at most (do not freeze).

What you need:
Wine cap sawdust spawn
Hardwood chips
Straw or leaves (optional, as a top layer)
Cardboard
Water
(Optional) A container or frame to mark out the bed

1. Choose a suitable spot
Choose a spot outdoors with partial shade or indirect sunlight. Along a hedge, under trees, or between vegetable beds are ideal locations. The soil may be slightly moist but not waterlogged.

2. Make a bed or use a container
Optional: mark out the spot with wooden logs or stones to define the bed. A bed of about 1 m² is enough for a few kilos of spawn.

3. Lay down a layer of cardboard
Cover the bottom of the bed with wetted cardboard (without plastic or tape). This suppresses weeds and holds moisture.

4. First layer of wood chips
Add a layer of about 7-10 cm of fresh wood chips on top of the cardboard. Wet these thoroughly.

5. Scatter a layer of spawn
Spread the sawdust spawn evenly over the first layer of wood chips. Try not to bury the spawn too deep, but mix it lightly into the top layer.

6. Second layer of wood chips
Add another layer of 7-10 cm of wood chips. Wet these thoroughly as well.

7. Cover with straw or leaves
Cover everything with 1-2 cm of straw or autumn leaves to hold the moisture and protect the mycelium from drying out.

8. Watering
Week 1: water lightly every day
Week 2-4: water every other day
After that: only in dry weather, about 1x per week or as needed
Note: too deep (more than 50 cm) or too wet makes the bed anaerobic, which kills the mycelium.

Incubation and growth
After about 4 to 8 months the mycelium will have grown all the way through the wood chips. You can recognise it by the white thread-like structures in the bed. Fruiting (the mushrooms) can take place from spring into autumn, depending on temperature and humidity.

Fruiting & harvesting
The mushrooms appear quickly, often after a rain shower.
Pick the mushrooms at the button stage, when the cap is still domed and is just opening.
Harvest them by taking hold of them at the base and carefully twisting them loose or cutting them off.

Note: older specimens are quickly attacked by insects (worm-eaten).