Madison man grows 200 pounds of mushrooms a week in tiny downtown space
AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
Local farmers and gardeners come to MicroMyco to get as much compost as they can use.
By Emilie Heidemann
Wisconsin State Journal
Oct 14, 2023
Excerpt:
One Thursday inside his urban mushroom farming space, Griffin showed just how he grows and produces the fungus in a 1,400-square-foot space.
“Mushrooms offer a really nice way to be able to grow food in an urban environment using unconventional materials that might just be thrown away otherwise,” he said.
Grown from spores, mushrooms are a good protein source with antioxidants and other nutrients that can replace meat, which can have harmful impacts on the climate, he said.
On shelves inside the space at 100 S. Baldwin St., No. 205, were some jars that Griffin said contain a water and sugar culture to help the various mushroom species he grows form what’s called a mycelium, or the root of the fungus.
“Most people are not familiar with what’s out there just from your typical portabella or white button mushroom,” he said. “I’m growing everything except for that — six to seven varieties depending on the week.
“My four main (species) are oyster mushrooms, lion’s mane, king trumpets and king black oysters, and a few specialty varieties.”
The head of the mushroom that you’ll likely see as you walk through any forest is the reproductive organ of the fungus, which releases the spores, he explained. The time it takes for a mycelium to form depends on the species of the mushroom, Griffin said.
