Hello. Hope everyone here is doing well. I live on vancouver island. I want to grow blue oyster mushrooms in my garden. I know golden oysters are invasive but i'm not sure about blue oysters though. If i grow these i'll try to not let them release spores but i'll be honest, i'll probably fail so what are some non invasive or native mushrooms i can grow? If blue oysters aren't invasive i'll just grow them. Thank you.
Greetings @Ilman - a very thought-full question! We have several different oyster species native to BC (P. dryinus, P. ostreatus, P. populinus, P. pulmonarius): If you are purchasing spawn, the grower should be able to tell you which Pleurotus species they can provide to you, and whether they carry any native species. I understand that Blue oyster is a term typically used for a particular strain or subspecies of Pleurotus ostreatus, and while P. ostreatus it is a bit less common here, we do have it in BC. - While I can't offer expertise on this question - it doesn't seem to me like a strain or subspecies would constitute a potential threat if the species itself is native? Would love to hear from others on this! Yes I gather P. citrinopileatus / yellow oysters have taken hold in areas they are non-native to, so I respect your desire to avoid contributing to that sort of situation. Typically the cause of these sorts of invasives taking hold is not so much spore release, as it is folks chucking semi-spent substrate into an areas where there is compatible wood type for new substrate to colonize.
ok thank you! ill see if i can find any of those species you mentioned, and also thank you for the answer. have a great day!
