Mushroom farming in the West has been a mystery art for more than a hundred years, ever since French cultivators took the lead in developing the common Agaricus. Professional farmers have kept their methods to themselves as trade secrets out of fear of competitiveness, only disclosing them to their closest friends and never to newbies. Mushrooms are just more difficult to grow than flowering plants, which adds to the enigma surrounding their domestication. Even the common Agaricus found in supermarkets requires a level of care and attention to detail that goes much beyond what is often required of gardeners and farmers. Some species will not grow at all under artificial circumstances; many more will not bear fruit.
The popularity of mushrooms has essentially exploded all over the world in past ten years. Specially the western world is now inundated with excellent field guides for the higher fungi cultivation for the first time in history, and a good number of individuals are learning to gather and consume the wild species of their choice. Forays and conferences focused on mushrooms are becoming more and more popular among people in the US and Canada. Other species than the typical Agaricus have started to show up in specialized stores and even supermarkets obtained by cultivation.
It may never be known why such a drastic shift occurred in certain regions of the world that were historically mycophobic. Mushrooms have always been an object of fascination, and I believe that the rise in popularity could be because of 1960s-era consciousness revolution. The rediscovery of psychedelic mushrooms, namely the species of Psilocybe, which have utterly taken over American society lately, may be a more specific cause.
Thousands of individuals have purchased field guides and attended mushroom conferences because of the possibility of gathering wild psychotropic mushrooms in various regions of North America. Many individuals are curious to acquire the craft of mushroom cultivation because species of Psilocybe cubensis are quite easy to cultivate at home. Psilocybe enthusiasts frequently discover that as they follow their hobby, their interest in mushrooms expands to encompass other genera that contain great edible species that are not hallucinogenic. Uninterested in psychoactive species, other mycophiles have develop likeness to edible species and seek easier access to them than the ones wild offer. As a result, numerous amateurs are looking for the secrets the professional cultivators are keeping.
The book you're going to read marks a significant development to answer the growing interest in mushrooms and provides a guide to the cultivation od mushrooms while collecting the information professional and cultivation expert in mushroom farming had to offer.
It covers every facet of the topic in enough information and an accessible manner to help both keen mycologists and amateurs grow the mushrooms they enjoy. The authors decode the art of mushroom cultivation and make it accessible to everyone by including details on the tools and supplies used, and providing step-by-step instructions for procedures, from starting point of spore cultures to harvesting of fruiting bodies and economic feasibility. I am happy to introduce this excellent work. You will discover it to be everything you have been looking for and more if you wanted some information on mushroom cultivation.