Mushrooms and Sawdust

Over in my Black Soldier Fly(BSF) post (BSFL and Sawdust) it was mentioned that I could use Shrooms to break down sawdust.

I know next to nothing about fungi, but a quick google on the subject leads me to believe I could use sawdust/compost to grow shiitake.

My question is, do the shrooms do anything to break down their growing medium? Could I set up a shiitake grow bed then after harvesting throw that sawdust/compost remnant to my compost pile to further breakdown into BSF food?

I guess I'm looking for a way to use some waste products from my farm to create an edible eco system.

Thanks for reading!

Willie S.:Yes, as you research this subject you will find that There are two main components of wood mass that can not be broken down easily with out the use
of 'shrooms, lignin and an other component that the next poster will remember and Add ! these are the very same materials that the Bio-fuels people are spend-
ing millions on trying to do what mother nature i.e. 'shrooms do every day !

So generally- one batch of mushrooms breaks down the lignin, when they are done the way is paved for the other 'shrooms to attack the other difficult part, one
colony of fungi following the other colony, "X" then Lignin, Lignin then 'X" ! If I didn't help much the next guy will correct my (small?) :0 errors and explain more
better ! just looked it up its cellulose and lignin I was thinking that that cellulose broke down into the two parts , not that it was cellulose and lignin - you lose a lo
t if you don't keep up !

For the Craft ! PYRO AL - As always questions, comments are solicited and Welcome A. L.

Generally speaking; white-rot fungi primarily break down the lignum, while brown-rot fungi primarily break down the cellulose.

There are many means and ways that can be applied, in the facilitating of fungal break down of your "waste" wood. Different circumstances dictate ideal methods. Such as the type of wood, age of wood and the woods physical state.

One common method is the introduction of Wipe Caps and Shaggy Mane to a heavily wood-mulched bed... Both are "sun lovers"... If you know where you would like a future raised bed, but yet have the compost/soil for it; you can start a mushroom bed in that location with 6+ inches of wood debris, chips and "sawdust".