Back to the Roots: Organic Mushroom Grow Kit

Grow your own pink oyster mushrooms in your house!

This is not a sponsored review.

We love mushrooms around here, and oyster mushrooms are always a great representative of the mushroom kingdom. Our choices in the grocery store are usually limited to buttons, portabella, and shitake, so the ability to grow a different variety is quite appealing.

It would be accurate to say that I have a healthy fear of wild mushrooms. I've been interested in foraging and wilderness survival for most of my life, and avoiding mushrooms that aren't positively identified has always been a good idea. So, although we do have a number of edible wild mushrooms here in Northwest Florida, I hesitate to eat any of them.

Lactarius indigo, Indigo Milk Cap (I think), Edible, found in my yard

There are several mushroom kits on the market these days, but this is the first time I'd seen one in a store. I found these kits from Back to the Roots in Walmart while on sale for $15. They're regularly $20, so I gave them a shot.

Easy Set-up

One of my main points of interest was the complexity of this activity. I was relieved to discover that it was quite simple. The instructions are clear, and the box comes with all of the necessary resources aside from water. Take the bag out of the box, cut an X in one side, then place the bag in water over night. Put the bag back in the box with the X towards to hole we create in the side of the box (it's perforated), place somewhere with indirect sunlight, and wait.

Easy Maintenance

Fill the included bottle with water and mist twice per day. That's it.

Harvest

Harvesting the mushrooms is as easy as growing them. I simply pulled them off when they started looking old. I trimmed the stems, washed them, and stuck them in the dehydrator.

Progression

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

Day 4

Day 5

Day 6

Day 7, Harvested

No second flush

Final Verdict

This was a fun experiment. It gave me a wonderful introduction to growing mushrooms without making me feel like I was in over my head. Was it $15-$20 worth of mushrooms? No, absolutely not. It did, however, give me a jar of dried pink oyster mushrooms and an overwhelming desire to grown more mushrooms. Thanks to this fun little kit, Triple Strand Ranch will likely pursue a mushroom garden!

Triple Strand Ranch on YouTube