Organic Lion's Mane Mushroom Sawdust Spawn
Skill level | Intermediate |
Grow location | Outdoors |
Grow methods | Logs, buckets |
Spawn shelf life | 6 months (refrigerated) |
Bag weight | 5.5 lbs |
Incubation | Buckets: 3-4 weeks; Logs: 12-24 months |
Fruiting temps | 55-70°F |
Best log type | See wood chart below |
Lion's Mane (Hericium erinaceus) is a delicious hearty mushroom that produces plump, dense, shaggy "pom pom" clusters. It also makes a great seafood substitute, as it has a consistency and flavor similar to crab meat. What's more, it's highly versatile, as it can be enjoyed cooked, dried, extracted, or even steeped as a tea.
For those who don't mind waiting, lion's mane is ideal for growing on logs and totems. However, if you're looking for a faster-growing lion's mane, we recommend growing it in buckets (as it's a great side-fruiting mushroom).
The log method requires patience, as it can take 1-2 years from inoculation to get your first flush. But once established, a single log can continue to produce for several years if kept in the right conditions!
Recommended use:
- Lion's mane sawdust spawn is recommended for log projects and/or bucket projects.
- Lion's mane sawdust spawn must be added to another substrate (like hardwood chips or sawdust) or used in log inoculation in order to fruit.
- If growing on logs, one bag of sawdust spawn will reliably inoculate up to 20 logs. (You can calculate how much you'll need here.)
Lion's Mane log chart:
BEST WOOD SPECIES* | Beech, Hornbeam, Hard Maple |
OTHER SUITABLE SPECIES | Alder, Aspen, Birch, Black Walnut, Box Elder, Cherry, Chestnut, Cottonwood, Elm, Hackberry, Mulberry, Oak, Soft Maple, Sweetgum |
AVOID | Hemlock, Pine |
Upon receiving your spawn:
Remove it from the shipping box as soon as possible. Then, unfold the top of the bag, making room for air space. It's also important to check and confirm that the filter patch is not obstructed. This will help the organism breathe and continue to thrive!
Scroll down for cultivation, inoculation, and storage guides.
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To grow on logs using sawdust spawn, you will need a Log Inoculation Tool, Log Sealing Wax, and Wax Daubers.
For larger log projects you may also want to purchase an Angle Grinder Adapter and specialized 12mm drill bit.
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Click here to download our pamphlet on growing mushrooms on logs and totems.
Click here to learn how to grow in buckets and containers.
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Lion’s mane prefers the Totem Method, though it can work with Log or Stump methods. (Yields tend to be smaller with log or stump methods). Colonization is 12-24 months and fruits in the fall. Lion’s mane prefers maple but can grow on many hardwood species and on logs with large or small diameters.
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If you don’t plan to use your lion's mane sawdust spawn right away, store in the refrigerator. Use within 6 months of receipt.
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"5 of the Best Lion's Mane Mushroom Recipes"
Its unique flavor and consistency make it ideal as a seafood substitute in recipes. We like to slice it into rounds and pan-fry it in olive oil or butter. We also recommend ripping it up and making vegan or vegetarian crab cakes with it. You can find some amazing recipes online!
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All our spawn is made using organic cultures from our own culture bank. Our sawdust spawn is handmade from a blend of locally sourced, all-natural, organic, and non-GMO woods and supplements from farms and forests in New England and North America.
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If you’re going to consume home-grown mushrooms, make sure to cook your fresh mushrooms thoroughly with heat. If it is your first time eating this species, it is best to start with a small amount to check for allergies, even if cooked.
*Wood recommendations are based on our own testing. You may have different results experimenting with other wood species.
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Sawdust lions mane
I used the lions mane spawn to do maple totems all the spawn looked great now the long wait begins
North Spore
Thanks for the great review! We really appreciate your support. Please reach out if you ever need anything.
Love my lions main
Amazing as always fast delivery great blocks!!
North Spore
Thanks for sharing, Lola! Lion's mane is one of our favorite species, too! Glad you’re enjoying them
Lion's Mane Spawn
This makes an excellent alternative to the grain spawn, which was unavailable. It should work well, just requiring some amendment from a good nitrogen source like sterilized wheat berries or bran. Don't be discouraged by the whispy-looking mycelium on arrival; this species just appears to colonize very lightly. Before long, it will seem to fruit out of nowhere. I will be using this for making totems on birch and fruiting blocks. Lion's Mane is a gnarly-looking mushroom and mighty tasty; you won't be disappointed when these grow.
Beautiful spawn!
Top quality sawdust spawn, mycelium is very happy in the substrate and already making its way into 18" totems at this very moment. Very happy with North Spore, now my go-to place for spawn.
North Spore
Thanks for sharing, Dirk! Let us know how they turn out!
Haven't had luck
Haven't had luck yet with them. Could be wood I'm using.
Great spawn!
These arrived packaged well and as expected. The Lion’s mane spawn looks healthy and ready to use!
5 stars so far!
I peaked under the bags on the four totems I created just two weeks ago and, I found small fruiting bodies about 11/2 inches across, maximum, already forming at the base of the totems! I was pleasantly surprised at that! They were growing from the bottom of the totem on the cardboard! Our weather has been superb the last two weeks , being low fifties at night and high sixties/ low seventies F. by day. We have had several light rains. I am super happy and energized about the future crops I hope to harvest and will be starting more operations soon. In fact I will be starting a couple beds for oyster varieties this week, as soon as my new order arrives! Thanks North spore for the healthy sawdust spawn and the tutorials/videos!
active mycelium growth
I received the sawdust spawn packaged well and with clear instructions included. The bag contained mycelium growing in the sawdust. I expect to harvest Lion's Mane mushrooms in the future from the four totems I created.
High Quality and Fast Growing!
My Lion's Mane sawdust spawn came extremely quickly and was very safely packaged. The block was already colonized with mycelium and was actually growing lion's mane already! I broke up the block into much smaller bags and cut holes in each of the bags before suspending them in a humid chamber to grow them for my own personal use. I was thinking of attempting a monotub approach but am not brave enough to try and grow lions mane this way. I will absolutely order from north spore again!
High Quality Spawn
I inoculated a totem log on June 26 and on July 3 it began fruiting from the sawdust! The photo shown was taken on July 7. I'm sure this flush will be small due to the log not being colonized yet. I put a nice thick layer in each totem cut so I'm sure that helped. But I've been more than satisfied by the customer service and high-quality spawn so far.