

Mature shiitakes, with flat caps and white or slightly speckled gills, are not great for transporting or sales, but they’re still delicious and fabulous for grilling.īut, if you come across very mature shiitakes with gills that have turned brown, do not eat them.

Leave young shiitakes with intact veils to continue growing and only harvest them once you can see their gills. The ideal stage to harvest shiitake mushrooms is when the edges of the caps are still curled under, and 80% of the gills are exposed.īut, you can harvest shiitake mushrooms at any time during their growth, regardless of size.Īn easy way to tell if they’re ready for harvest is to check if the partial veil has broken, exposing the gills. The younger your pink oysters, the more tender and succulent they’ll be. You can also harvest pink oysters before the caps start to flatten, especially if they’re already a good size. Pink oyster mushrooms could be ready to harvest in as little as 4 to 5 days from when mushroom pins started to form. Pink oyster mushrooms are the fastest growing of all oyster mushrooms and also produce the most spores, so it’s important to harvest them before they cover everything in pink dust. The best time to harvest pink oyster mushrooms is when the cap is flat or slightly concave, and the edges are just beginning to curl up. The video below will help you recognize the ideal point of harvest for oyster mushrooms.Īs your blue oysters get closer to maturity, it’s a good idea to check on them regularly.Īnd, if you’re not sure, rather harvest them a little early to avoid cleaning up mushroom spores. Harvesting oyster mushrooms when the edges of their caps are still slightly rolled under limits the number of spores they release, which is beneficial when growing them indoors. The good news is you can still eat these very mature mushrooms, but they won’t last as long after harvest, and their texture may not be as good. You know you’ve waited too long if they stop growing in size, start drying out or release a lot of fine, white dust-like spores. It can be hard to judge the first time you grow oyster mushrooms, but with practice, you’ll learn when they’re ready to harvest. The edges of your oyster mushroom caps should still be slightly curled under when you harvest them. It’s best to harvest oyster mushrooms when the caps begin to uncurl and flatten, but before they become too flat. The ideal time to harvest oyster mushrooms is not determined by size but rather by the shape of their caps. Signs of maturity in mushrooms are generally the caps flattening or becoming convex and the gills enlarging and dropping spores.

How do you know when mushrooms are done growing? The ideal point of harvest looks different for each mushroom variety and is something you learn through experience…usually by harvesting too late a few times! When harvesting mushrooms, you’re trying to balance letting them grow in size to get a good yield without letting them become too mature. Final Thoughts When Should You Harvest Mushrooms?
