A Checklist of Everything Needed for Your Mushroom Home Grow
Growing your own mushrooms is a fairly simple process once you understand what you’re doing and you have the correct tools and supplies on hand. Whether you are embarking on a customized grow experience you create yourself – or utilizing a grow kit or grow bag – at its most basic level, mushroom cultivation requires just a handful of tools and supplies.
Although specific requirements may vary depending on the volume and type of mushroom being cultivated, at a minimum you will need the following to be successful growing mushrooms:
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Adequate space:
Mushrooms are known as an incredible crop that can produce as much as 110 pounds per week from an area no larger than 90 square feet. However, for home growers who are seeking to produce much lower yields, the space requirements can be as small as the counter space needed to hold a one-pound plastic bag. So long as you have a small area free from clutter to hold your bag or bucket of substrate, you can grow mushrooms.
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Grow bags (or buckets):
Your mushrooms need a place to thrive during the mushroom growing process. Today, many people use grow bags to house their mushrooms but large plastic buckets also work. Both provide relatively high CO2 and humidity levels that your spores and subsequent mycelium are required to have in order to fully colonize the substrate. Beginners often gravitate toward growing in clear bags since it is easier to follow the growth process from beginning to end.
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Substrate/growing medium:
This is where the growing occurs so it is important to utilize substrate that provides the mycelium with the critical nutrients needed to produce high-quality mushrooms. Mushroom substrates can include a wide variety of materials, including sawdust, cardboard, coffee grounds, coco coir or other materials.
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Liquid culture or spores:
A syringe of liquid culture or spores is one of the most important supplies needed in order to start growing mushrooms. Spores are the reproductive organs of the mushroom. Each spore contains all the genetic information needed for a new mushroom to grow and reproduce. In order to grow high-yielding and quality mushrooms, spores or liquid culture should be purchased from a reputable seller. An established commercial seller will be able to provide contaminant-free spores in a syringe which can easily inoculate your substrate.
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Sterilization:
You will need a way to sterilize the substrate. In larger mushroom farms, sterilization is usually accomplished with an autoclave, which can cost thousands of dollars. Some smaller growers sterilize their substrate using a steam barrel system, or with a pressure cooker. Today, home growers and hobbyists can purchase substrate that is already sterilized to enjoy worry-free cultivation.
Armed with this list of basic needs, you should be prepared to set out on your mushroom growing journey. Fortunately, home hobbyists can enjoy cultivating mushrooms with ease thanks to the proliferation of grow bags and grow kits available today. Mushroom kits contain everything needed to grow mushrooms – and the most difficult parts of the process are already completed. These kits are an excellent choice for beginners.
If you’d like more information on how mushrooms grow, check out our blog post on the topic.