Mushrooms are a mysterious bunch, frequently misunderstood in both fairytales and gardening communities. If you have only tried the ones wrapped in cellophane or from a can you have missed the delicious (and nutritious) varieties of one of my favorite foods!
Scientists say they know of 10,000 varieties of mushroom in North America alone, and most experts say there are still many more varieties as yet undiscovered. Of those, only 3% are known to be toxic. The rest might be largely inedible (like those rock hard ‘shelf’ mushrooms growing on trees), but many are delicious!
Mushrooms taste great in soups, stews, sauces, and more. They can liven up pasta dishes, pizzas, and salads. My personal favorite way to cook with mushrooms is to saute them with olive oil, zucchini, rosemary and garlic cloves! If you think you don’t like mushrooms (as many do), consider the difference between an eggplant and a green bean. There’s as much variety in the world of fungi! (See mushroom backstory: Mistaken Identity )
If you’d like to expand your mushroom repertoire but don’t see anything new in the grocery store, or don’t like the prices, why not grow your own? Mushrooms are a low-maintenance, beginner-friendly food, and if you buy a kit there’s no other barrier to entry.
Mushroom vocab
First, because fungi are in an entirely different kingdom from animals or plants, let’s go over some vocabulary that might be unfamiliar to you.
Spore– This is how mushrooms sexually reproduce and spread. Similar to a plant’s seed, spores are released by a mushroom when mature.
Substrate– This is the material or medium on which your mushrooms will grow. Unlike plants, most mushrooms prefer materials other than soil to grow in (though some are perfectly happy there). Common substrates include sawdust, dead logs or tree trunks, wood chips, or compost.
Spawn– A commercial product of mixed spore and substrate as a nutrient source. If you purchase a mushroom kit, you’ll receive it in the form of spawn blocks or cylinders.
Mycelium– the underground growth of a mushroom body, similar to a plant’s root system. These must be established first before actual, recognizable mushrooms poke up.
Inoculate– A verb that means to apply the spawn to the larger amount of substrate you’ve prepared.
Setting yourself up for mushroom growing
Now that we’ve covered the basics of how to speak mushroom, let’s talk about setting up a mushroom growing space. Since, there are thousands of varieties of mushrooms, it’s best to decide what type you’d like to grow and then look at some of the specific considerations you’ll need to make when choosing a fungi friend:
Indoor or outdoor
When deciding to grow mushrooms, the first decision you’ll probably make is whether to grow them in your house or yard. This question might be answered for you if you have limited or no outdoor garden space, or if you live in a very small apartment. The choice might also be out of your hands if the outdoor climate in your area isn’t very well-equipped to handle mushrooms (see more on this below). Consider whether you want to watch them all the time, or just check on them occasionally to water or harvest. This might make a difference in where you put them!
Moisture levels
Think about when you commonly see mushrooms popping up in the wild. It’s usually after some wet, rainy weather! Mushrooms need a LOT of moisture to get going in nature, and your home-grown mushrooms will be no different. If you live in a very dry climate where water is infrequent, rationed, or otherwise expensive, perhaps keeping many logs of mushroom habitat in your backyard is unrealistic. You might stick to mushrooms with lower moisture contents, or choose those happy to live in a small bag of sawdust on your counter.
Light levels
Some mushrooms might be okay with getting the occasional beam of sunlight, but some like it really, REALLY dark. Think about this before deciding to put your little mushroom patch in a raised bed next to your tomatoes. You also might consider what space in either your house or garden goes unused because of its low light levels. Could you use that perpetually shady spot under some trees or in your basement and transform it into a mushroom habitat?
Substrate type
Mushrooms can thrive in a number of weird mediums that your finicky begonias would turn their noses up at. That’s what’s so great about these weird little night-dwellers! Straw, mulch, sawdust, old logs, and compost make perfect fungi homes, depending on the species’ preference. If you happen to have a large quantity of any of these lying around, that might help you make your decision.
Length of time
If you have the patience to wait several months to three years before your mushrooms settle into their home, kudos! Some mushrooms (especially those growing on logs outdoors) take longer to grow than others. Think about how long you’re willing to wait before you’d like a harvest. If you’re already taking the time to nurture some long-lived perennial vegetables in your victory garden like asparagus, raspberries, or even fruit trees, why not add some mushrooms to your repertoire? If you need more instant results to keep you motivated to grow more, do it! Self-knowledge is the key.
Temperature
Just like your vegetables, mushroom species have wildly different preferences when it comes to the temperature. Enoki mushrooms, for example, like it cold- around 45°F. Most, however, prefer temperatures around 60-75°F.
What kind of mushroom?
Based on your answers above, find a mushroom that fits those specifications that you’d also like to eat. Different varieties have different growing requirements. Temperature, light levels, moisture levels, and substrate types can all change based on the variety. Common, forgiving mushroom types are oysters, lion’s mane, shiitake, and enoki. They’re frequently found in kits with descriptions of that variety’s growing requirements on the box. That’s really all there is! You can expect to harvest pounds and pounds of mushrooms from a log like the one described over the course of a season. Low maintenance and a big harvest – I’m making room for mushrooms in my Victory Garden!
*Bonus- of course you need to have one corny joke: What kind of room has no windows or doors? A mushroom!
Happy Planting!
DeeAnn
The Victory Garden Gal
www.VictoryGardenGal.com