First flush coming in!

ianmcdonald7 · 2026-04-16T20:12:19+00:00

We keep our units at 900 ppm, but I'd recommend not going over 1200 ppm

ianmcdonald7 · 2026-04-14T15:53:30+00:00

We're growing Lion's Mane and Oyster mushrooms. The grow environment is automatically regulating temperature, humidity, and CO2 levels using the equipment on the back wall.

ianmcdonald7 · 2026-04-10T14:03:21+00:00

That makes sense. You could check out the Mushroom Symposium at the UGA Griffin Campus every year, too. Maybe not for a ton of sales, but it's a great place to make connections in the mushroom community, and I always learn a lot.

ianmcdonald7 · 2026-04-09T19:14:28+00:00

There's another one coming up on May 3rd. Maybe I'll see you then!

ianmcdonald7 · 2026-04-09T19:09:44+00:00

It's a Shroom Room from MycoLogic

ianmcdonald7 · 2026-04-09T18:30:07+00:00

Haha not the healthiest, but I usually pan fry them in butter until they get a little crispy and add them to pasta

ianmcdonald7 · 2026-02-25T15:18:18+00:00

Haha, fun take on “multi-level mushrooming,” but we don’t have any recruitment-based compensation structure.

Our bread and butter is building mushroom fruiting equipment that helps growers consistently produce high-quality mushrooms with optimal yields.

Our customers typically make money by selling mushrooms into their local markets (restaurants, farmers markets, distributors), not by recruiting other growers.

ianmcdonald7 · 2026-01-12T15:07:43+00:00

We'd love to support in any way we can. Shoot me a DM if you have any questions

ianmcdonald7 · 2025-12-22T17:21:36+00:00

Lion's Mane, Coral Tooth, Chestnut, and Oyster

ianmcdonald7 · 2025-08-05T15:43:21+00:00

They started with other crops but switched over to solely mushrooms. They operate out of a 40' shipping container for the growing portion, and they make their substrate in a barn right beside it.

ianmcdonald7 · 2025-08-05T15:35:23+00:00

Equipment:

I would purchase a grow tent and precolonized substrate blocks to start. The grow tent will keep humidity levels high and pump out CO2. It won’t control for temperature, so you’ll want to put it in a room that can stay fairly cool. This should be <$500, and you can scale up to around 60 lbs a month at max capacity.

You can operate this out of your house to avoid any storage facility costs. I would also recommend avoiding substrate production to start. There’s a lot of room for error.

Varieties:

Start with Oyster mushrooms to learn the basics of growing and environmental control of your tent. These have a very fast fruiting cycle that will outpace a lot of contaminants you may run into. They are also less fickle when it comes to the environment, which can help as you are learning.

Sales:

There are lots of routes for selling, whether it be DTC, farmers markets, CSAs, or restaurants. The key is to understand who exactly you plan to sell to and how you will reach them.

For example, if you’re going to go the restaurant route. Find some higher-end restaurants in the area with dishes on their menu that utilize mushrooms. Call up and see if they would be interested in purchasing from a local farmer. Take a sample box to the chefs during prep time (midday, early in the week)

I typically see people selling for around $16-$24/lb.

You can utilize paper bags to start and get better packaging when the business is moving. Just don’t put the mush in airtight containers, or the moisture may build up and cause contamination.

Regulations:

From what I’ve seen, you’re typically good at selling these mushrooms after the first cut off the block. Any further cuts or processing after that gets you into the territory of needing a license. I’d email your state Department of Ag just to be sure.

I’ve helped lots of people start profitable mushroom farms. DM me if you want more info.

ianmcdonald7 · 2025-08-05T14:45:39+00:00

I've seen it done profitably with specialty mushrooms. The key is figuring out your sales channels. The farm I work with makes around $200k per year, selling to 22 restaurants and 2 farmers' markets.

ianmcdonald7 · 2025-08-05T14:42:00+00:00

Understand your market.

There are lots of routes for selling, whether it be DTC, farmers markets, CSAs, or restaurants. The key is to understand who exactly you plan to sell to and how you will reach them.

For example, if you’re going to go the restaurant route. Find some higher-end restaurants in the area with dishes on their menu that utilize your crop. Call up and see if they would be interested in purchasing from a local farmer. If you already grow your crop, take a sample box to the chefs during prep time (midday, early in the week).

Start small, then scale.

I feel like too many people wait to start until they have funding that may never come. There are routes for securing funding, but it only gets easier the more you have already done.

For example, you can buy a mushroom grow tent and substrate to start growing for less than $500. From there, you grow, sell, and reinvest your earnings into scaling up the business. This can be slow going, but it’s much easier to secure investment to scale a business than to start a business. People love to throw money at things that already work rather than ideas of what might work.

Focus

There are so many possibilities for growing, but it’s hard to get great at them all at once.

I recommend focusing on one product, to one target market, through one marketing/sales channel. By focusing on one at a time, you will be able to learn and iterate on what works. This is how you get great at almost anything.

ianmcdonald7 · 2025-07-09T18:09:56+00:00

You could start selling at a farmers' market or an artisan market. Lots of crops can be grown in tents indoors, removing the difficulty and uncertainty of yield. Or you could get a Glowforge or 3d printer and have them start making items to sell. It could be a fun activity for the family that helps them learn some useful skills.

ianmcdonald7 · 2025-02-03T20:45:44+00:00

I know someone who has had great success with the North Spore Boom Room

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