Mushroom farming

[sufficientforme]

Does anyone do this? I was thinking about the recent post of adding less work, high return items to the farmers market table. I know people pay top dollar for mushrooms, I wonder if this is a feasible option?
I am going to order this small kit for the kids and I to enjoy, even if it is not cost effective I hope it is educational
http://www.gardeners.com/White-Button-Mushroom-Kit/20728,33-619,default,cp.html

 

[Zenbirder]

I just got the portabella kit in, it is the same supplier company out of CA but I bought through Territorial Seeds. I ordered the book "Mushroom Cultivator: A Practical Guide to Growing Mushrooms at Home"
Paul Stamets; Paperback; $23.07 from Amazon.

I have great hopes that I can keep the fungus growing. I am starting a special compost for future generations. One of the keys seems to be having places that hold the right temperature. My home pantry is just right in the winter, and I am hoping my new cold pantry, earth berm on two sides and insulated, will keep the temp cool enough in summer. The kit arrived completely covered with mycelium.

We love the mushrooms as a center of the meatless meal, but they have become too expensive for our budget. The white button mushrooms are the same species as the portabellas, just a different cultivar (cultivated variety).

 

[Cassandra]

Oh, I am jealous. I love mushrooms. But in the real world we probably only spend $10 a year on mushrooms. I couldn't possibly justify the expense of a $40 box of them unless I was certain I could get them to live on and on.

That is a future hopeful project of mine. But it will have to wait in line.

Cassandra

 

[patandchickens]

Unfortunately, if you look at the math (using ACTUAL harvest numbers, not the boxes' "expect up to <large number of> pounds of mushrooms per kit") there is just no way you are going to make any money selling kit mushrooms at a farmers market. Indeed from the experience of people I know I'd say you will be *lucky* if they end up costing you less (to eat yourself) than store-boughten mushrooms.

And commercial mushroom farming is a whooooooole nother thing. I suppose if you happened to have a suitable structure on your property -- like a deeply buried old bomb shelter or something -- it might be entertaining to at least look into what it'd take, but I would not, unfortunatley, hold your breath, sorry.

Good luck,

Pat

 

[johnElarue]

I bought a box of 250 ****ake mushroom plugs from the home center for about 7$, and set up a bunch or oak logs in a shady/wet spot in the yard. Went to work with the cordless drill and also drilled out softwood stumps for experiments. While I'm not doing this for market it should be interesting to see what comes up next year, if the deer don't get them first.

 

[Cassandra]

Oh, yeah. A $7 experiment is right up my alley. And that actually sounds like fun.

Cassandra

 

[Zenbirder]

Unfortunately, if you look at the math (using ACTUAL harvest numbers, not the boxes' "expect up to <large number of> pounds of mushrooms per kit") there is just no way you are going to make any money selling kit mushrooms at a farmers market. Indeed from the experience of people I know I'd say you will be *lucky* if they end up costing you less (to eat yourself) than store-bought mushrooms.

You are so right, there is no way the kits could produce a profit to sell at market. I am actually going to try mushroom farming on a small scale. I got the kit to make sure I had a good stock of spores. We went today and got a free truck load of horse manure that I mixed with straw and chicken manure to get the compost started. I used to be a lab technician, and my degree from so long ago is in agriculture. I think I can do this

Portabellas are going for $1.50 to $2 each in the store here, and they are usually looking a bit old and tired by the time they hit the shelves. The white button mushrooms can be had for a lot less, and they go on sale fairly regularly. I have not seen a portabella on sale here in the last year!

 

[sufficientforme]

Unfortunately, if you look at the math (using ACTUAL harvest numbers, not the boxes' "expect up to <large number of> pounds of mushrooms per kit") there is just no way you are going to make any money selling kit mushrooms at a farmers market. Indeed from the experience of people I know I'd say you will be *lucky* if they end up costing you less (to eat yourself) than store-boughten mushrooms.

And commercial mushroom farming is a whooooooole nother thing. I suppose if you happened to have a suitable structure on your property -- like a deeply buried old bomb shelter or something -- it might be entertaining to at least look into what it'd take, but I would not, unfortunatley, hold your breath, sorry.

Good luck,

Pat

Sorry I was not clear, I was just going to order the boxed kit for fun. I was meaning for people who have the space for the beds/housing etc for a larger scale operation. I agree anything in kits is usually more expensive, not feasible for what I was talking about

 

[sufficientforme]

Keep us posted Zenbirder, I think this is an interesting outlet. I am always looking for something to do And I think we are close to the same weather situation.

 

[Zenbirder]

I bought a box of 250 ****ake mushroom plugs from the home center for about 7$, and set up a bunch or oak logs in a shady/wet spot in the yard. Went to work with the cordless drill and also drilled out softwood stumps for experiments. While I'm not doing this for market it should be interesting to see what comes up next year, if the deer don't get them first.

Please keep us posted! I had thought of wood grown mushrooms, and after research I don't think they will work well with our lack of humidity.