History of mushroom cultivation
The consumption of mushrooms probably occurred during prehistory, in the hunting and gathering period. Unlike plants, mushrooms could not be cultivated at first and were collected for a long period of time. Read more
Introduction to mushroom growing
A mushroom develops in two stages: a vegetative phase when it grows and decomposes organic matter, and a fruiting phase, when mushrooms (fruiting bodies) are produced. Read more
Mushrooms suitable for cultivation
Some mushrooms can be cultivated from commercially available spawn either as dowels, grain inoculated spawn or as truffle trees. Read more
Commercially-available spawn
Commercially-available mushroom spawn: Read more
Mushroom substrates
There are various types of substrates which are used in mushroom growing, including: Read more
Mushrooms selected for cultivation
Recommended mushroom species for cultivation. Read more
Cultivation methods: humus-inhabiting mushrooms
The mushroom growing substrate referred to as ‘compost’ is quite different from garden compost or soil. Read more
Cultivation methods: wood-inhabiting mushrooms
Woody materials and logs can be prepared much more quickly than compost. The logs should be cut from healthy trees (preferably due to storm damage or tree maintenance work) during the dormant season. Read more
Materials and tools needed
Materials Read more
How to grow oyster mushrooms in logs
This instruction relates to growing Oyster Mushrooms from dowels; these are intended for inoculation into hardwood logs. Read more
How to grow oyster mushrooms in waste coffee grounds
The best advice for success is to start by growing Oyster mushrooms, the easiest and most forgiving variety for any home cultivator to grow. Read more
How to grow shiitake mushrooms
Shiitake mushrooms require cellulose-rich material and will grow on a variety of woody substrates. Read more
How to grow button mushrooms
Agaricus is unlike other mushroom spawn in that it is a secondary decomposer; this means that it needs to work with bacteria which carry out the primary decomposition of cellulose material into a form accessible by Agaricus. Read more
How to grow Matsutake mushrooms
A member recently asked for details on growing the famous (and VERY expensive) Matsutake, the source of some pretty vicious armed confrontations between foragers and landowners not too many years ago. Read more
Preserving mushrooms
Mushrooms can be preserved in several ways, but some species are better preserved in certain ways rather than others. What follows is a brief guide. Read more
