"I would love to bring my class here on a fieldtrip! I've been interested in mushroom growing for a long time. Reading books is not a nearly as helpful as seeing you. I hope I have a great garden this year."
"I loved detail in the demonstrations - actually did each step. Great food! Nice to have handouts on each topic to reduce note taking - Thanks"
"Awesome as expected"
"Appreciated variety of growing methods reviewed. Greenhouse classroom wonderful + food delicious. Whole experience was a delight. Thank you for so generously sharing your knowledge. :)"
"This whole concept is very exciting. Thanks Tradd, for the fun and interesting presentation"
Mushroom Mountain is a great resource for developing an interest in mycology and recycling in the environment. Our kits, spawn, and services are engineered to teach and easy to follow – ensuring a great success in the lab and classroom.
Fungi are being used to create food, fuel, medicines, and fiber. So unlock the power of the fungal kingdom and create something great!
If you let them, Mushrooms will grow on any of the below items:
Toilet/Papertowel rolls
Egg cartons
Newspaper
Magazines
Cereal boxes
Coffee grinds
Tea bags
Old cotton clothing
Kleenex boxes
Paper shreddings
Cardboard boxes
And many many more
Egg carton oysters example
Take your paper shreddings and put them in a large pot. Then soak it with room temperature tap water. Soak overnight.
You can take any type of paper, stay away from paper that has wax in it. any dyes are Ok, becuse the oyster mushrooms will break them down.
Take some of the wet shreddings, and line the bottom of the egg carton with them.
Sprinkle some oyster spawn (yellow, pink, blue, grey), and repeat the layering, until you reach the limit of the egg carton. Close the egg carton, put it in a plastic bag, and keep in a cool place, no sunlight. Make sure that it does not dry out.
2 to 3 weeks later move to a bright location (not direct sun). Slightly open the bag, so the mushrooms can breathe. You will have oyster mushrooms fruiting all over the egg carton.
Illustrated: Pink Oyster Mushroom - tropical strain, good for growing in summer.
Yellow Oyster Mushrooms are also tropical.
Blue and Grey Oyster Mushrooms will grow year round.
Other Experiments
Try looking around the house for items that can be used for mushroom cultivation. Before throwing things into the garbage, store them somewhere until you are ready to use them. If the cultivator jar is too small…use a five gallon bucket! We have grown mushrooms here on cardboard papertowel rolls, toilet paper rolls, cleenex boxes, paper plates, cardboard egg cartons, pencil shavings, and the shreddings from our office paper shredder….let us know what you can grow them on!
Mushrooms produce heat, carbon dioxide, and water during their metabolism. You can track the heat produced with a thermometer and graph the changes up until fruiting. Remember to take a room temperature reading for comparison.
You can also grow these mushrooms in a small aquarium, mixed with small plants to make a ecosystem. The plants will provide oxygen back to the mushrooms – which will make carbon dioxide for the plants! Try to see which does better…the aquarium with plants only, mushrooms only, or both together. A great project that many can observe.
When the media is fully colonized, you can introduce different quantities of motor oil, diluted herbicides and pesticides, and other environmental toxins to see what levels can be tolerated or degraded.
Mushroom Mountain is a great resource for developing an interest in mycology and recycling in the environment. Our kits, spawn, and services are engineered to teach and easy to follow – ensuring a great success in the lab and classroom. 
