Unusual Vegetable Plants

Mushrooms

Many of us buy mushrooms from our local greengrocers, but few spare a thought as to where they come from. As with many other vegetables they need specific conditions to be grown successfully, so farms are often dedicated to growing them as a sole crop. Some mushroom farms have been in operation for generations in the UK, but many are now struggling to compete with opposition from European imports from the Dutch, and especially Poles. Many mushroom farms in the UK are even being forced out of business, because of rising costs and the lower prices being paid by the large supermarket chains. Consequently, for those of us that want to continue eating fresh mushrooms that have not been imported, they may like to consider growing their own. There are many enthusiasts who traipse through damp woodlands in search of fresh wild mushrooms, but this is not to be recommended to the uninitiated due to the possibility of accidentally picking poisonous varieties, although, high class restaurants will pay good money for their supposedly superior flavours. Nor of course, is it very practical as there would not be enough to supply millions of us

Growing mushrooms at home may sound far fetched, but given a little enthusiasm it is not all that difficult and bearing in mind that mushrooms are relatively expensive to buy, it can be a worthwhile exercise. These days you can order packets of mushroom spores, very much as you would speciality seeds, from mail order companies, or of course over the internet. Growing them is fairly straightforward as long as you follow the instructions that come with the packets, however you will need to mix your own mushroom growing compost.

Don't be tempted into buying "Mushroom Compost" as sold in you local garden centre, because the chances are that it will be "Spent" mushroom compost. That is waste compost that has already been used to grow mushrooms in and had most of the required goodness already taken out by a crop of mushrooms grown at a mushroom farm. It will be fine to improve your garden soil, but of little use for growing mushrooms. What you may find at your local garden centre is mushroom growing kits. When my parents used to have their garden centre over 15 years ago they regularly sold mushroom kits that contained all things necessary to grow a fair crop of mushrooms at your home.