The commercial exploitation of the white rot fungus Lentinula edodes (shiitake)

The Japanese wood mushroom, Lentinula edodes, can be cultivated under UK climatic conditions using extensive cultivation systems adapted from traditional growing methods developed in Japan and Taiwan. As well as producing a desirable and high value food product, cultivation offers a viable alternative enterprise for farmers. The growing methods described could provide incentives for the management of broad-leaved woodland in Britain with consequent conservation benefits. Four different strains of Lentinula edodes were grown on oak logs under natural environmental conditions below the woodland canopy and fruited in polyethylene tunnels. Yields ranged from 0.5–0.9 kg wet weight shiitake per cordwood log per year over a three year fruiting period.