How We Grow Mushrooms at Shroom-Mates: From Spawn to Harvest
At Shroom-Mates, mushrooms aren't just an ingredient in our products.
We actually grow them.
Our mushroom operation started small, but we've continued expanding the varieties we grow and the ways we use our harvest. Today, we grow a variety of gourmet and functional mushrooms, including Oyster, Lion's Mane, Reishi, Shiitake, Chestnut, and Pioppino mushrooms.
Growing each variety comes with its own challenges. Some mushrooms move from inoculation to harvest in just a couple of weeks, while others can take several months.
Here's a look at how we grow our mushrooms at Shroom-Mates.
What Mushrooms Do We Grow?
We grow several different mushroom varieties, including:
Oyster mushrooms
Lion's Mane
Reishi
Shiitake
Chestnut mushrooms
Pioppino mushrooms
Each variety has its own growth characteristics, which means we can't treat every mushroom exactly the same way.
Oysters, for example, grow relatively quickly, while Shiitake takes considerably longer.
That variety is one of the things we enjoy about growing mushrooms.
What Do We Grow Mushrooms On?
Our mushrooms are grown on a combination of hardwood fuel pellets and soy hull pellets.
Hardwood provides the primary wood-based substrate that many gourmet mushrooms naturally prefer, while soy hull pellets provide additional nutrients for the growing process.
The pellets also give us a consistent substrate that we can prepare for our different mushroom varieties.
Making Our Grain Spawn
Before we can grow mushrooms, we need something to introduce the mushroom culture into our growing substrate.
We make our own grain spawn using locally sourced milo.
Milo provides the grain base that the mushroom mycelium colonizes before it is introduced into the larger growing bags.
Using locally sourced grain is another way we keep part of our growing process close to home.
Our 10-Pound Growing Bags
Once our grain spawn is ready, we use 10-pound Unicorn Bags for our mushroom production.
These bags allow us to prepare our substrate, inoculate it with spawn, and give the mycelium room to colonize the substrate before the mushrooms begin fruiting.
The process takes patience because the timeline varies significantly depending on the mushroom variety.
Inoculation and Colonization
The first major step is inoculation.
This is when we introduce the mushroom spawn into the prepared growing substrate.
Once inoculated, the mushroom mycelium begins spreading throughout the substrate.
This stage is called colonization.
During colonization, you aren't necessarily looking for mushrooms yet. You're waiting for the mycelium to establish itself throughout the growing bag.
Once the substrate is properly colonized, the conditions can be adjusted to encourage the mushroom to begin fruiting.
How Long Does It Take to Grow Mushrooms?
One of the interesting things about mushroom farming is how different the timelines can be.
At Shroom-Mates, our approximate timelines from inoculation to harvest are:
Oyster about 14 days, Lion's Mane about 20 days, Shiitake about 3 months.
Those differences make mushroom growing particularly interesting.
You can go from inoculation to harvesting an Oyster mushroom crop in roughly two weeks, while Shiitake requires considerably more patience.
Other varieties, such as Reishi, Chestnut, and Pioppino, have their own growth characteristics and timelines.
Our Grow Room
Once the mushrooms are ready to fruit, environmental conditions become extremely important.
We keep our grow room around 60–70°F with humidity around 92%.
Mushrooms need a humid environment to develop properly, but humidity isn't the only factor we have to manage.
Fresh air exchange is also important.
Fresh Air and Air Movement
Our grow room uses a 6-inch exhaust fan along with multiple regular fans to help move air throughout the room.
The exhaust system helps exchange the air in the grow room, while the additional fans help keep air moving.
Managing humidity and fresh air at the same time can be a balancing act.
Too much air movement can dry things out, while insufficient air exchange can create its own problems.
That's one reason mushroom growing involves much more than simply putting a bag somewhere warm and waiting.
Growing Oyster Mushrooms
Oyster mushrooms are some of our fastest-growing varieties.
From inoculation to harvest, we can go from spawn to mature Oyster mushrooms in about 14 days under the right conditions.
Oysters can produce impressive clusters and are one of the varieties we enjoy growing because of their relatively quick turnaround.
We grow multiple types of Oyster mushrooms, which gives us the opportunity to work with different colors, shapes, and growth characteristics.
Growing Lion's Mane
Lion's Mane is very different from Oyster mushrooms.
Instead of forming familiar mushroom caps, Lion's Mane develops a large white fruiting body covered in hanging spines.
Our Lion's Mane takes approximately 20 days from inoculation to harvest.
When Is Lion's Mane Ready to Harvest?
Knowing when to harvest Lion's Mane is important.
We look for the mushroom's spines to begin developing.
For our harvest, we want the spines to be developing but generally no more than about 1/4 inch long.
Harvesting at the right stage helps us get the quality and appearance we're looking for from our mushrooms.
You can learn more about Lion's Mane in our guide:
What Is Lion's Mane Mushroom? Uses, Nutrition & How to Use It
Growing Shiitake
Shiitake is a completely different experience.
While Oyster mushrooms can be ready in roughly two weeks and Lion's Mane in around three weeks, Shiitake takes approximately three months from inoculation to harvest.
That means Shiitake requires significantly more patience and planning.
It's a good reminder that there's no single timeline for growing mushrooms.
Different species have different requirements, and part of mushroom farming is learning how each variety behaves.
Growing Reishi, Chestnut, and Pioppino
We also grow Reishi, Chestnut, and Pioppino mushrooms.
Each has its own appearance, growth pattern, and timeline.
That's part of what makes growing a variety of mushrooms so interesting. The same general principles apply — substrate, spawn, colonization, environmental control, fruiting, and harvesting — but each species has its own personality.
Harvesting Our Mushrooms
Once the mushrooms reach the appropriate stage, it's time to harvest.
For fresh mushrooms, timing matters.
We want to harvest them when they're at the stage that provides the quality and appearance our customers are looking for.
After harvesting, our mushrooms can go in several different directions.
Fresh Mushrooms
We sell fresh mushrooms to our wholesale customers and at farmers markets.
This gives customers the opportunity to cook with mushrooms that were recently grown and harvested.
Dried Mushrooms
We also dry some of our mushrooms.
Drying allows us to preserve the mushrooms and gives us another way to use our harvest.
Mushroom Products
Some of our dried mushrooms eventually become ingredients in other Shroom-Mates products.
We use mushrooms in products including:
So the mushroom you see in one of our products may have started its life right here in our growing operation.
Why Growing Our Own Mushrooms Matters
There are plenty of mushroom products available online.
One thing that makes Shroom-Mates different is that we have firsthand experience growing the mushrooms we work with.
We understand what it takes to get a mushroom from grain spawn to a finished fruiting body.
We've dealt with humidity, fresh air, contamination, different growth rates, harvesting, drying, and all of the other challenges that come with growing mushrooms.
That experience influences the products we make.
From Spawn to Your Kitchen
The journey from grain spawn to finished product can be surprisingly long.
It starts with locally sourced milo and mushroom cultures.
Then comes inoculation, colonization, fruiting, environmental management, harvesting, and processing.
Some mushrooms are harvested and sold fresh.
Others are dried and used in our mushroom products.
Either way, it all starts with growing the mushrooms.
That's what Shroom-Mates is all about.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does it take to grow mushrooms?
It depends on the species. At Shroom-Mates, Oyster mushrooms can take about 14 days from inoculation to harvest, Lion's Mane around 20 days, and Shiitake approximately three months.
What do you grow mushrooms on?
We grow our mushrooms on hardwood fuel pellets and soy hull pellets.
What grain do you use for mushroom spawn?
We use locally sourced milo to make our grain spawn.
What temperature do you grow mushrooms at?
Our grow room is maintained around 60–70°F, depending on the conditions and mushroom variety.
How humid is your mushroom grow room?
We maintain approximately 92% humidity in our grow room.
How do you provide fresh air?
We use a 6-inch exhaust fan along with multiple fans to help exchange and circulate air throughout the grow room.
When do you harvest Lion's Mane?
We look for the spines to begin developing and harvest when they're generally no more than about 1/4 inch long.
What happens to the mushrooms after you harvest them?
Some are sold fresh to our wholesale customers and at farmers markets. Others are dried and used in Shroom-Mates products.
Final Thoughts
Growing mushrooms is a combination of patience, observation, environmental control, and a lot of hands-on work.
From our locally sourced milo grain spawn to our hardwood and soy hull substrate, through colonization, fruiting, and harvesting, we handle a large part of the process ourselves.
And because we grow Oysters, Lion's Mane, Reishi, Shiitake, Chestnut, and Pioppino, we're constantly learning something new.
The next time you see a bag of Shroom-Mates mushroom coffee, powder, tincture, tea, or seasoning, remember that the story may have started with a small amount of grain spawn and a mushroom growing inside a 10-pound bag.
