Shiitake Mushrooms and 'Sploding Shrooms Extravaganza Super Fun Time by The Good Boys

Featuring Vlad A., Patrick W., Nate C., Gerar S.

In the first lab, on April 4, 2016, we were given the opportunity to grow our own Shiitake mushroom culture. The shiitake mushrooms belong to the phylum basidiomycota and the pilobolus belongs to the phylum zygomycota. Basidiomycetes produce spore-producing structures called basidia, while zygomycetes grow their spores within their zygosporangia. Both of their life cycles involve fusing between their spore membranes and their nuclei, but the basidia are club shaped and the zygosporangia are yoke shaped. Both of these fungi are saprophytic and most of their lineages can be found on plant debris.  
This culture was grown and observed over a course of three weeks. These mushrooms were grown out of a mushroom kit given to us. Over this time, the number, size, and appearance of the Shiitake mushrooms changed dramatically. The mushroom patch was watered with a spray bottle of de-ionized water everyday, Monday through Thursday. They were then covered with a plastic bag to maximize humidity and moisture within the mushroom growing environment.

After one week, on April 11, our mushroom patch can be seen in the picture below. 8 fruiting bodies were visible, ranging from 1 cm to 4 cm in cap width. Some had fully developed

fruiting bodies, while others were just starting to bud out of the mushroom patch.

On April 13, nine days after beginning the experiment, our mushroom patch is seen below. No new fruiting bodies were observed, but cap size of the fruiting bodies of the mushrooms increased drastically, ranging from around 2 cm to 9 cm. They did not appear to be soggy or over-watered.

On April 18, 14 days after beginning the experiment, our mushroom patch is shown below. Only 7 fruiting bodies were observed because Nate decided to eat one mushroom on this day, describing the taste as “sharp and pungent”, while having a “lingering unpleasant aftertaste.” The fruiting bodies did not grow as dramatically, with the biggest one having a cap width of 10.5 cm. 

April 20, 16 days after the start of the experiment, the mushroom patch is shown below. No new fruiting bodies were observed. The 7 fruiting bodies decreased in size ranging from 2.5cm being the smallest up to 7cm being the largest. 6 of the 7 fruiting bodies also looked very hydrated to a point of looking soaked, kind of like the folds of human hands after being in water too long. We might have over watered the patch 2 days ago. Nate gave another mushroom a try, top middle one, explained the experience as “very soggy”.

We took one mushroom and examined it closer. This was Nate's "soggy experience" mushroom. It shows the gills clearly, remnants of the ring, and the bulba. One thing that was interesting about the growth of the mushrooms is that the mushrooms grew mostly on one side. This was interesting because the log was watered on all sides and the mushrooms were not placed anywhere near the sun most of the time (at least to our knowledge).

Mushroom gills under dissecting microscope. Gills felt waxy and sturdy, did not flake off when touched.

 

Besides growing a mushroom log, we also grew pilobolus on fecal matter. They are phototropic, and they grow in the direction of a light source. First picture taken a week after the initial planting of the pilobolus. They were covered with aluminum foil with a hole cut in the center for light, and the spores should be shot at this direction, as shown by the picture on the right.

The pilobolus was examined closer under a dissecting microscope, and the black dots are the spores, as shown by the picture below:

Looking at pilobolus and shiitake, some notable differences can be seen. For one, the individual spores are seen on top of each fruiting body in the pilobolus, while the spores in the shiitake are in the gills. The fruiting bodies of the shiitake mushrooms were also larger, compared to the pilobolus. The pilobolus also only grew on fecal matter, while the shiitake grew on a patch made of wood and foam.

In the end, this was a great opportunity for examining fungi up close and personal. Vlad, Gerar, and Nate enjoyed eating the shiitake mushrooms raw, but Patrick said it was disgusting. We learned that taking the skin off of the mushroom made the taste more bearable and the after taste no longer lingered. Patrick still thought it was disgusting nonetheless.