Hey mushroom lovers! I’ve been growing mushrooms for years now and lemme tell you – it’s way easier than most people think! Today, I’m gonna share my top picks for the easiest mushrooms to grow at home, plus some simple tips to get you started. Trust me, if I can do it you definitely can too!
Why Should You Grow Mushrooms at Home?
Before we dive in. here’s why growing your own mushrooms is totally worth it
- They grow FAST – you can harvest in just 3-4 weeks indoors!
- Takes very little space – even a closet or cabinet works
- Super low maintenance – perfect for busy folks
- Cost-effective – one growing kit can give multiple harvests
- Fresh mushrooms whenever you want ’em!
The 5 Easiest Mushrooms for Beginners
1. Pearl Oyster Mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus)
These are hands-down the BEST mushrooms for beginners! Here’s why I love ’em:
- Grows on practically anything (even coffee grounds!)
- Super quick to fruit
- Really hard to mess up
- Tolerates temps between 45-77°F
- Ready in just 2-3 weeks indoors
Growing Tips: Keep them in a cool, dark spot and mist with water twice daily. They love high humidity!
2. Shiitake Mushrooms (Lentinula edodes)
My second favorite for newbies:
- Can grow both indoors and outdoors
- Great for log cultivation
- Amazing flavor and health benefits
- Fruits between 57-68°F
- Takes 6-12 months on logs, but worth the wait!
Pro Tip: If you’re impatient like me, grow them on sawdust blocks indoors – they’ll fruit in 7-10 weeks!
3. Wine Cap Mushrooms (Stropharia rugosoannulata)
Perfect for garden growers
- Grows great outdoors in wood chips
- Super adaptable (41-95°F)
- Helps improve your garden soil
- Fruits in 4-6 months
- Perfect for permaculture gardens
4. Pioppino Mushrooms (Agrocybe aegerita)
These little guys are awesome for:
- Indoor growing in jars
- Nutty, delicious flavor
- Likes cool temps (55-64°F)
- Ready in about 6 weeks indoors
- Great for stir-fries!
5. Lion’s Mane (Hericium erinaceus)
Not just pretty to look at:
- Easy to grow at room temp
- Amazing health benefits
- Unique taste and texture
- Perfect for indoor growing
- Fruits multiple times
How to Start Growing Mushrooms at Home
What You’ll Need:
- A dark, cool space
- Growing container (6+ inches deep)
- Mushroom spawn (don’t start with spores!)
- Growing medium (depends on mushroom type)
- Basic thermometer
- Spray bottle for water
Basic Growing Steps:
- Pick your spot (basement or cabinet works great)
- Set up your container
- Add growing medium
- Mix in mushroom spawn
- Keep at 70°F until rooted
- Cover with 1 inch potting soil
- Keep damp with wet cloth
- Wait for mushrooms (usually 3-4 weeks)
Common Questions I Get Asked
Q: Do mushrooms need light?
Nope! Since they don’t have chlorophyll, they don’t need sunlight to grow.
Q: Will mushrooms regrow after harvesting?
Sometimes! But for consistent crops, you’ll probably need to add more spawn.
Q: Should I pull or cut mushrooms?
ALWAYS cut! Pulling can damage the mycelium underneath.
My Top Tips for Success
- Start with oyster mushrooms – they’re super forgiving
- Buy spawn from reputable sellers
- Keep everything clean
- Maintain consistent temperature
- Don’t forget to mist regularly
- Be patient!
Growing mushrooms at home is such a fun hobby, and honestly, it’s nowhere near as complicated as some folks make it seem. I started with just one oyster mushroom kit in my basement, and now I’m growing multiple varieties! Just remember to start small, follow the basic steps, and don’t be afraid to experiment once you get the hang of it.
Happy growing, fellow mushroom enthusiasts! Drop me a comment if you have any questions – I love helping new growers get started!
Keep in mind that you should only buy spawn from trustworthy sources and never eat wild mushrooms unless you’re 100% sure of their identity!
Wine Cap Mushrooms
Unlike tree mushrooms like oysters, wine caps grow in the ground. This makes them ideal for growing in well composted outdoor garden beds.
Also know as King Stropharia or the garden giant, they’re commonly used in permaculture systems as they rapidly break down organic matter and kill soil-based pathogens in garden beds.
Wine cap mushrooms are easy to grow thanks to their hardy love of the outdoors.
They spread fast and are aggressive growers, so you’ll get a big return on your growing efforts.
They will grow on a wide range of substrates, including wood chips, sawdust, straw, and leaf litter which makes them perfect for creating a bed in your garden made with a range of different substrate materials.
Some of the benefits of the wine cap mushroom include:
- Builds rich soil in the garden
- High source of fibre
- Higher Vitamin D due to outdoor growing conditions
- Favourable, mild taste
The ideal growing conditions for wine cap mushrooms are as follows:
- Season: Autumn and Spring
- Location: Outdoors in a partially-shaded garden bed
- Humidity: Keep the soil moist by using straw or hardwood chips as a base, planting in a shady spot, and giving plants light watering every few days.
- Temperature: Above 10C (50F)
- Light: Sunny with partial shade. A place that gets more sun will need to be watered more often to keep the soil moist.
If you’re in the UK, you can pick up some King stropharia spawn in our shop.
Check out our guide on growing Wine cap mushrooms in outdoor mushroom beds for more info.
Also known as the black poplar mushroom, Pioppino is fast becoming a popular mushroom to grow due to the unique shape and texture, which has made it a popular variety with chefs.
Its native area is southern Europe, where it often lives in the wild and grows next to poplar trees.
These mushrooms are simple to grow because you can do it on pasteurized straw inside or in wood chip or straw mushroom beds outside.
If growing indoors, you’ll get best results in lower temperatures below 15C (59F) and high humidity. We think the best way to grow Pioppino is in outdoor beds made of wood chips or straw. This can be a little harder to do without a dedicated, controlled growing space.
When grown like this, you can just inoculated a bed or patch with Pioppino spawn and wait for it to fruit in the autumn when conditions are optimal.
Some of the benefits of the Pioppino mushroom include:
The ideal growing conditions for Pioppino mushrooms are as follows:
- Season: Autumn fruiting outdoors, or year-round indoors
- Location: Inside an indoor grow chamber or outdoor mushroom bed
- Humidity: Keep humidity high by spraying with water every day
- Temperature: Ideally 8-16C (46-60F)
- Shade: It can grow in dim light, but direct sunlight is fine.
If you’re in the UK, you can pick up some Piopinno grain spawn in our shop.
Mushrooms Are Profitable
Mushrooms grow quickly and densely, and with relatively little effort required to tend to them.
Let’s say you have about 32 feet (10 metres) to dedicate to your mushroom setup and around 10 hours of spare time to spend farming. You could yield at least 22lbs (10kg) of oyster mushrooms every single week.
You could be growing a load of mushrooms in the amount of time most people spend watching TV each week!