Growing mushrooms is incredibly easy. In fact, anyone can do it! In this article, we’ll show you how to grow your own mushrooms from home by following these simple steps.
Step 1: Fill Trays With Compost. Use 14×16-inch trays about six inches deep that resemble seed flats.
Step 2: Use a Heating Pad.
Step 3: Spray With Water.
- When the compost has been well mixed, spray it with water using a fine mist sprayer. You can also use a watering can or water hose to do this. Spray the compost every day, morning and evening.
- Continue to monitor moisture levels by pressing your finger into the compost (you should be able to leave an indentation). The texture of the compost should be moist but not soggy. If it’s too wet, allow it to dry slightly before continuing; if you’re finding that it’s drying out faster than you can keep up with, add more water!
Step 4: Spread the Mushroom Spores.
The next step is to spread the mushroom spores evenly on the compost, making sure that they are in contact with water and oxygen. The easiest way to do this is by using a spore print. A spore print is simply a piece of paper or card that has been placed over a mushroom cap as it expands so that as the caps expand up from the gills, it leaves behind what looks like an x-ray image of their growth pattern. You can then be scraped off into the water and mixed with vermiculite (a popular soil additive). Once mixed with water and vermiculite, spread this mixture about ¼” thick across your growing bed—again making sure that there is plenty of space between each piece of spawn.
Step 5: Wait for the Mushrooms to Grow.
You’re almost there! Now all you’ve got to do is wait for the mushrooms to grow. You can expect them to sprout in about one week, but it might take longer depending on how warm your house is and how much light it gets.
Mushrooms are fungi, so they require a dark and damp environment to grow. This makes them ideal companions for your garden shed or basement, but they’ll also do well under a window if you don’t have anywhere else cool enough. If your mushrooms aren’t growing at all after two weeks, check that they aren’t getting too much light; if so, move them somewhere darker (but still warm) until they sprout again.
Mushrooms grow from spores that are spread through the air; when these spores land on compost or soil that’s been enriched with nutrients and moisture (like worm castings), they grow into new plants called mycelium—the root-like filaments that support a mushroom’s cap.* You can buy pre-made compost for this step at hardware stores or home improvement stores like Home Depot or Lowe’s; it should come with instructions for adding water before adding spawn (see below).
Step 6: Harvest the Mushrooms.
Mushrooms are ready to harvest when the caps are fully open. The mushrooms will shrink as they mature, so you should harvest them at the right time.
Mushrooms which have been grown in a commercial growing environment will not have a lot of moisture on them and may be ready for harvesting earlier than those grown at home.
If you use scissors or a knife to harvest your mushrooms, it’s best not to cut all the way through the stem—leave about 1cm (about half an inch) attached so that you don’t remove too much moisture from the cap and stem. This helps them keep longer once harvested!
You can grow mushrooms in your backyard, and they are tasty!
Once the compost has been added to the trays, you can spray each of them with water. This will help to keep your compost moist and ready for mushroom growth. Once you have sprayed your tray with water, spread the spores evenly over the surface of your compost using a brush or other tool.
The next step is waiting! For between one and three months (depending on which type of mushroom you are growing), simply watch as your trays fill up with mushrooms. When ready, harvest them by taking one tray out at a time and covering it with plastic wrap or other clear covering material before placing it in an area where there is good airflow but no direct sunlight exposure. Your harvested mushrooms should be eaten within ten days from this point onwards as they may become spoiled if left any longer than that period without refrigeration storage conditions being applied at all times during storage periods when not being consumed by humans directly (though some species can last longer than others under these same rules).
Conclusion
That’s all there is to it! You can now go out and start your own mushroom garden. Remember, it takes patience, so don’t give up if things don’t work out the first time around. Good luck!
