Different types of mushrooms grow on different substrates. Wood, sawdust, straw, horse manure and coffee grounds are all good substrates for some mushrooms. Button, or common mushrooms, grow on a compost mixture of manure and straw. They develop through a mycelial stage, when the fibers of mycelium spread through the compost, then a fruiting stage, when the mushrooms develop. As they grow mushrooms need high humidity and oxygen. Burlap is used to hold in moisture while allowing air circulation.
Prepare the Substrate
Mix equal parts of straw and manure. Horse manure is used most often, but other manures will work. Form a pile about 4 feet deep, 4 feet tall and 4 feet wide.
Measure the temperature of the pile on the third day. If it is not at least 160 degrees Fahrenheit, add more manure.
Turn and water the compost every 4 to 5 days. Keep it about as moist as a damp sponge.
Place the compost in trays after about 20 days. Allow the compost to cool to 75 degrees Fahrenheit before inoculating.
Inoculation and Incubation
Break the spawn into pieces smaller than a golf ball. Place the pieces in the compost 8 to 10 inches apart and about 2 inches deep.
Water the compost and cover with burlap. Continue to keep it moist, but not soggy.
Keep the trays in a space that is dark and as close as possible to 70 degrees Fahrenheit for 21 days. Water gently whenever the burlap feels dry.
Grow and Harvest
Cover the compost with a 1-inch layer of good garden soil and move to an area that stays at a constant 60 degrees Fahrenheit.
Continue to keep moist by sprinkling and covering with moist burlap. Watch for tiny white dots that appear on the soil. These will grow into clumps of mushrooms.
Harvest when the cap has split away from the stem. To harvest, press down on the soil and twist or cut the mushroom stem.
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Things You Will Need
- High carbon compostable material - straw, leaves, corncobs
- High nitrogen compostable material - manure, coffee grounds, tankage
- Soil or compost thermometer
- Mushroom trays
- Mushroom spawn
- Controlled humidity and temperature are extremely important to successful mushroom cultivation. Place thermometers at various locations to determine the best place to grow mushrooms.
- Compost can also be made using leaf mold, straw, coffee grounds or tankage and sand.
- Mushroom trays are generally wooden boxes 6 inches deep and 14 to 16 inches square. They must have drainage holes in the bottom.
- Compost must heat up to at least 160 degrees Fahrenheit as it is being prepared to kill spawn of undesirable fungi.
- Keep all equipment clean to prevent introduction of undesirable spawn.
- Mycological Society of San Francisco
- Mycomasters: Mushroom Growing Basics for Beginners
- Growing Gourmet and Medicinal Mushrooms; Paul Stamets
- Sonoma County Mycological Society: Growing Mushrooms
- Zedcor Wholly Owned/PhotoObjects.net/Getty Images