Using wood pellets to spawn 'shrooms

I'm having a helluva time sourcing hardwood chips to cultivate my garden giant spawn. I've noticed quite a few local shops with hardwood pellets for smoking your food along with other types of hardwood chips and chunks. My idea is to use a combination of the pellets, chips, chunks, and pine shavings as a substrate for cultivating the king stratopharia spawn I have. Anybody have any thoughts or experience with this.

I always prefer to use fresh hardwood chips straight out of my old chipper machine from trees and branches I cut in late winter/early spring. Alder, oak, poplar, apple and cherry seem to work the best, King Stropharia/Garden Giant will also grow on Douglas-fir chips and sawdust as well. Doug-fir sawdust and chips would probably be easier to find for free than hardwood chips if you live in Idaho. But when my chipper breaks down (which happens frequently), I sometimes use alder chips (for smoking salmon) that I buy in bags at the store combined with hardwood (usually alder or maple) sawdust from a local cabinet and ukulele maker. I usually use a 50-50 ratio of chips to sawdust. And if you use dry chips or sawdust from the store, be sure to soak the chips/sawdust for at least 24 hours in a bucket or large plastic bag before inoculation. Keep in mind that it's usually cheaper to ask tree service companies, furniture makers and even chainsaw sculptors for free wood chips and sawdust than to buy bags of chips or pellets at the store. Good luck!

I usually just look on Craig's list and someone's giving away chips, but I live in a semi-big city. If you found wood you could chip it, or borrow /rent a chipper.
John S
PDX OR

Dave Redvalley wrote:I'm having a helluva time sourcing hardwood chips to cultivate my garden giant spawn. I've noticed quite a few local shops with hardwood pellets for smoking your food along with other types of hardwood chips and chunks. My idea is to use a combination of the pellets, chips, chunks, and pine shavings as a substrate for cultivating the king stratopharia spawn I have. Anybody have any thoughts or experience with this.

if you're considering buying wood pellets for smoking, they are quite expensive. wood pellets for heating and usually pretty cheap, but you're in Idaho and it's the summer. So I think your best option may be to get some wood mulch. Stropharia loves the stuff and you can probably source it from a nursery or landscaping company. That's if you can't get in touch with a tree trimming company. I got them for free that way.