Specialty Mushroom Cultivation

Varieties

• Specialty mushrooms include shiitake, wine cap, wood ear, reishi, nameko, various strains of oyster mushrooms, hen of the woods, straw mushrooms, enoki and others. Each specialty mushroom requires a preferred substrate in which to grow and has individual growth rates until harvest.

Spawn

• Specialty mushrooms varieties come from spawn created in a clean room. Each variety individually grows on its preferred substrate, such as sterilized wood sawdust, corncob and chopped wheat straw. Nutrients added to the substrate include rye, millet and rice bran to support healthy mycelia growth, which will produce the fruiting body.

Environment

• High humidity of 80 to 100 percent and temperatures in the range of 60 to 77 degrees Fahrenheit are necessary for specialty mushrooms to grow successfully. Special equipment necessary to accomplish this is costly.