September 26, 2009
- Oyster mushrooms are expensive gourmet mushrooms. Find out how to grow them in your own home.

September 26, 2009
- Worried about purchasing psilocybin? Read this post to find out the do’s and don’ts

September 26, 2009
- Although truffles are hard to grow by yourself, this article provides some tips and tricks on growing truffles

September 26, 2009
- Great article on growing mushrooms in your own home made or commercial compost.

September 26, 2009

Two more extra news and stories about growing mushrooms:

• A fun day with some fungi – I went on a CUESA-organized farm tour last Sunday to Monterey County, about 2 hours south of San Francisco (Jen Maiser was also on the tour and wrote about it at Bay Area Bites). Our first stop was Far West Fungi in Moss Landing, …
• Netherlands to ban psychedielic mushrooms | Finland for Thought – The Dutch government said Friday that it will ban the sale of hallucinatory mushrooms, rolling back one element of the country’s permissive drug policy after a series of high-profile negative incidents. [...] Psilocybin, the main active …

This post via the: How To Grow Mushrooms blog where you can learn how to grow mushrooms at home, indoors or outdoors

As far as variety goes, you probably won’t find a larger category of mushrooms than LBMs or Little Brown Mushrooms as they are known.

Not all LBMs fall under types of poisonous mushrooms, but because of the difficulty in identifying LBMs it is probably best for you to do so.

They are very hard to identify by only appearance and unless you are an expert in identifying them it is advisable to just stay away from them completely.  To truly identify all LBMs that you come across requires microscopic analysis.

LBMs range from very small to medium in size.  Their spore prints come in all colors and they grow just about everywhere.  They grow on trees, on soil and appear practically anywhere as well: you can find them in forests, pasture fields or even on your lawn during the spring, summer and fall seasons.

What more could be said?  This group is a hard bunch to completely understand and even the experts cannot identify them all.  Instead, avoid them all and just grow your own mushrooms.

Because there are poisonous and non-poisonous variants of all shapes and sizes, with spore prints that have more colors than the rainbow it is just not advisable to try your luck on these guys. 

This post via the: How To Grow Mushrooms blog where you can learn how to grow mushrooms at home, indoors or outdoors

Among the types of poisonous mushrooms, false morels are more difficult to deal with for an untrained mushroom hunter.  One of the reasons being that a false morel very much resembles a true morel in some characteristics but the most evident is by the structure of the cap.

It is because of this that false morels are so easily mistaken for true morels in which people ingest these mushrooms thinking they are safe to eat, which sometimes they are but for many others it could be potentially dangerous.

Although false morels have a similar looking cap to a true morel it can be relatively easy to distinguish once you know what to look for.  False morels will in most cases, have a brainy-looking texture for a cap.

They also tend to bulge out with folds and flaps whereas a true morel will have clearly visible pits and ridges and although they may also look brainy to an untrained eye, they are well-structured, meaning it almost looks uniform all around.  The cap of a false morel will also seem to hang over the stem like a skirt but on a true morel the cap will appear to be attached to the stem on the edge.

There is one other way you can determine whether or not you may or may not have stumbled across a false morel.  This involves cutting the mushroom in half because you will be looking at the stem.

If you see that the stem is full or very much solid, chances are you had a run-in with a false morel.  True morels in most cases have a hollowed-out stem and occasionally may have stems that appear to be solid as well.

Now that you have a basic understanding of what to look for in false morels and true morels, go out there and start scavenging.  If you would rather not venture out on a mushroom hunt, why not learn how to grow mushrooms to enjoy at home?  For the rest of you adventurous folk, good luck.

This post via the: How To Grow Mushrooms blog where you can learn how to grow mushrooms at home, indoors or outdoors

photo credit: pellaea

Among the types of mushrooms that are poisonous, Amanitas has its own category or “genus” within the mushroom kingdom.  Within the genus amanitas there are many species, many of which are poisonous and also many of which are not.  With that said, this is not a guide on determining which of the species of amanitas are edible, but rather which ones you should stay away from, although it is advisable to stay away from amanitas and all wild mushrooms in general unless you are an experienced mushroom hunter and can identify the mushroom to be absolutely edible.  For the rest of us who prefer not to take the risk, try growing your own mushrooms at home.

Two of the most deadly and renowned species of amanitas go by the common names of Death Cap and Destroying Angel.  A similarity of both of these amanitas, aside from the fact that both are poisonous, is that both grow relatively close to trees, most commonly live oaks and sometimes pines.  Both the Death Cap and Destroying Angel have a white flesh and a white spore print.  Both also have a sac-like volva, which is located at the base of the stem.  The only way to get to the volva is to dig out the mushroom rather than cut it off at the stem.

The general appearance of the Death Cap and Destroying Angel are very similar with a few exceptions.  Death Caps may range in color from olive-brown to yellowish-brown, and white on occasions.  They may also have a greenish tint at times.  A Destroying Angel can be distinguished by its white or cream colored appearance with a pinkish hue at times.  One other feature of a Destroying Angel to distinguish it is at maturity it may have its cap curving upwards rather than having the traditional parasol or umbrella shaped cap.

This post via the: How To Grow Mushrooms blog where you can learn how to grow mushrooms at home, indoors or outdoors

September 21, 2009
- A good resource on mushroom growing supplies.

September 21, 2009
- Be careful of what you buy on e-bay. Read this persons response to see what happens.

September 21, 2009
- A short intro on the biology and life cycle of mushrooms grown outdoors.

September 21, 2009
- A brief review of the “Mushroom Cultivator book.” This book should be a staple in every mushroom growers library.

September 21, 2009
- National Mushroom month sounds delicious! Find out more about cooking mushrooms.

This post via the: How To Grow Mushrooms blog where you can learn how to grow mushrooms at home, indoors or outdoors

In order to grow mushrooms from scratch you will need spores.

You can choose which mushroom to grow by picking the particular spore strain.  Mushroom spores can be purchased online or you can make your own spores. A relatively mature mushroom is necessary to create your own spore prints at home.

Take your mushroom and remove the stem.  Thinly slice the mushroom and place the gills downward on a small piece of glass or paper.  Use only the top section of the cap for larger mushrooms.  Place another piece of glass or a heavy object on top of the mushroom print.  You should be able to see your new spore print within 18-24 hours.

You can use these new spore prints to inoculate your substrate and produce edible mushrooms.  Learning how to grow mushrooms from scratch isn’t as hard as is seems.  All you need is the spores, a good substrate, patience, time and effort.

Watch this how to grow mushrooms video for more information on mushroom spores and mushroom prints.

Here’s a great resource for learning how to grow mushrooms for profit:

• How to Grow Mushrooms in the Philippines – Business | Global … – Mushrooms, usually mistaken to belong to the fruit family but is actually a type of vegetable is a delicacy. Growing mushrooms only require a small place and Philippines – Business | Global Filipino Entrepreneur | PinoyBusiness.ORG.

This post via the: How To Grow Mushrooms blog where you can learn how to grow mushrooms at home, indoors or outdoors

Learning how to grow morel mushrooms indoors takes patience, time and effort.  The easiest way to grow morel mushrooms indoors is use a mushroom grow kit.  These mushroom kits come in different varieties from shiitake, oyster and other gourmet mushrooms.  But, if you want to grow morel mushrooms indoors without a grow kit, preparation is necessary

First, you must prepare the substrate and compost.  Then, combine your spores or spawns with the compost.  If you don’t have spawns or spores then you can either purchase or prepare them yourself.  A good casing mixture poured on top of the compost is necessary for the mycelia to fruit into edible mushrooms.

Learning how to grow mushrooms can be easy, rewarding and not nearly as difficult as you might think.  Many common mushrooms grow easily in compost which you can have in bags, boxes or trays.  You can start small and still grow mushrooms indoors.

This post via the: How To Grow Mushrooms blog where you can learn how to grow mushrooms at home, indoors or outdoors

This post via the: How To Grow Mushrooms blog where you can learn how to grow mushrooms at home, indoors or outdoors

You’ll Need:

• Pre-prepared syringes
• Your spore prints
• Sterile glass jar
• Exact-o knife or razor blade

How To Grow Mushrooms Videos

This post via the: How To Grow Mushrooms blog where you can learn how to grow mushrooms at home, indoors or outdoors

If you want to grow chanterelle mushrooms there are specific environments and climate temperatures that chanterelles require.  Chanterelles are mycorrhizal which means they require a symbiotic relationship with trees, bushes and plant in order to flourish and grow successfully.  More importantly, trees are necessary elements for chanterelle’s to grow, no tree’s no chanterelle.

Because of the specific nature of chanterelle mushrooms, it is difficult to grow personally or for recreation.  Hunting for chanterelle mushrooms is a better way of acquiring the mushroom.

If you want to get started growing your own mushrooms now, you can purchase a mushroom grow kit or learn how to grow mushrooms and grow your own chanterelle mushrooms.

This post via the: How To Grow Mushrooms blog where you can learn how to grow mushrooms at home, indoors or outdoors

photo credit: jramspott

How long does it take to grow mushrooms can be a rather obscure question.  The answer depends on several factors:  method of inoculation, temperature, materials used for the substrate, the mushroom species and the specific mushroom strain.

For the most popular mushroom varieties,using mushroom grow kits are the way to grow.  The spawn run is determined by the manufacturer, and mushrooms can appear in as little as two weeks.

A typical commercial cycle for compost grown mushroom species takes anywhere from 12 to 15 weeks.  If a lot of spawns are used then mushroom production can be seen as early as 6 weeks.

A spawn run for wood inhabiting mushroom species like shiitakes take from 6 to 18 months; an advantage is that mushrooms can continue to appear for several years afterward.

Once you learn how to grow mushrooms on your own, you’ll never have to ask “how long does it take to grow mushrooms” again.

How to grow mushrooms on a bible? Check this out:

• Book growing mushrooms | Bookshop Blog – Professional book dealers buyers see lots of books in bad condition, but this book covered in mushrooms may be one of worst ever spotted.

This post via the: How To Grow Mushrooms blog where you can learn how to grow mushrooms at home, indoors or outdoors

Learning how to grow mushrooms can be easy, rewarding and not nearly as difficult as you might think.  Common mushrooms such as button , portabella and oyster mushrooms grow easily on compost in trays, bags, boxes or raised beds.
Four Easy Steps:
The basic steps for growing mushrooms:

• Making the compost. Raw materials for the compost are mixed together, moistened and composted.
• Spawning. The compost is put in trays, bags, boxes or raised beds, under cover, and then the spawn is added. Controlling the environmental conditions are important to achieve optimum growth of the spawn.  Over the next several weeks, the spawns will fill the compost with mycelia.
• Casing. Casing involves placing a layer on top of the compost, to bring about environmental conditions which encourage the formation of fruiting bodies (ie: The mushrooms which are eaten).
• Harvest.  After several weeks, the first crop is picked. Further crops occur every week or so (These are called flushes). After a month or two, the flushes decline and the compost should be discarded and the process started again.

If you want to grow a lot of mushrooms, learning how to grow mushrooms and how to protect and harvest them are important in a successful crop.

This post via the: How To Grow Mushrooms blog where you can learn how to grow mushrooms at home, indoors or outdoors