Bioluminescent Mushrooms, Giving It a Try

11 years ago

Okay, so I just ordered one of those glowing mushroom (Panellus Stypticus) kits. They are supposed to be native to my area (the appalachians), so I figured I'd give growing them a shot. If they prove to be worth the trouble, I just might attempt to introduce them to my woods (again, since they're supposed to be native to this area, no worries about introducing an aggressive foreign species).

Only potential problem I can see there is that I've read that they prefer hardwood, and I've got a mostly pine forest out here. I'll have to see if they'll grow on fallen pine or not. We've got literally tons of rotting pine out here from the pine beetle plague that went through years ago, so there's plenty of deadwood out here that needs a helping hand in going away, and honestly it would be seriously cool to go outside on a moonless night and see the woods glowing.

Assuming these things glow bright enough to actually be seen from more than a few feet away, that is.

Comments (4)

lycopus
11 years ago
It is a rather faint green glow. You need to adapt your eyes to the dark for about 15 minutes before it is visible. Once you do that they are pretty easy to see provided there are no other light sources around. I've only found the species on well-rotted hardwoods and once managed to get it to grow on some broken pieces of dead birch.
Edymnion
Original Author
11 years ago
Eh, well I've got my log prepared and will be putting in the plugs tomorrow. Says it'll take 3 months to get any fruit, which will be in the middle of winter, but from the looks of whats going on in the package I don't think they'll stay viable until spring.

I'll just get a plastic tub from walmart to close them up in.
Edymnion
Original Author
11 years ago
Checked in on them last night, and was greeted by this:
{{gwi:615204}}

So I turned out the lights, gave my eyes a minute to adjust, and yup, all that white sheet was most definitely glowing.

Btw, does anyone know how much light is "safe" for this sort of mushroom? I've got it in a terrarium at the moment with some dirt in the bottom (to help retain moisture and humidity), and was wondering if it could stand enough light to put some moss in there too?

This post was edited by Edymnion on Mon, Dec 10, 12 at 17:06
KatyaKatya
11 years ago
Panellus stypticus grows out there in the woods, so shouldn't mind some light.