How to Culitvate Mushrooms

Chop your straw coarsely. You can either use a machete or a lawnmower for this. Take care to keep hands clear of the blades. The average length of the straw should be about 6 inches when you are done.

Pack the straw tightly into the bucket, and pour in boiling water until the straw is covered. Leave the straw in the water for 45 minutes.

Drain the water from the straw. Discard the waste-water and put the straw into the swimming pool. Spread the straw out to allow it to cool.

Check to see that the straw is cooled to room temperature. Mix in the spores.

Separate the mixture into the garbage bags. Each bag should contain about one gallon of mixture. Tie the bags tightly.

Poke holes in the bags every 6 inches or so. This ventilation is important to the survival of the spores.

Incubate in a dark area for 10 days. Keep the temperature of the environment at about 70 degrees Fahrenheit.

Refrigerate the straw and spore bags for one day. This shocks the mushrooms into bearing fruit.

Remove the bags from refrigeration and place back in the 70 degree area. Hang a sheet of plastic over the bags like a tent.

Spray water into the tent three times a day, "misting" your spores. They will grow through the holes you poked in the bag.

Harvest the mushroom caps as they grow to be near an inch across. Continue to mist your mushrooms after your first harvest, as you will likely get two or three harvests from one bag.