Growing mushrooms indoors is a perfect compromise between store-bought and fresh-foraged options. When growing from home, you can choose from more varieties than available at the market and enjoy them as fresh as possible when you’re producing these delicious fungi at home.
If you’ve never tried this before, you may be wondering what is the best mushroom growing kit for beginners. I’ve carefully reviewed 6 great options that are perfect for beginners, youngsters, busy people, and those who want a low-maintenance growing experience.
Here is a quick summary of our top recommendations
- Back To The Roots Organic Mushroom Growing Kit
- North Spore Lion’s Mane Mushroom Kit
- Mushroom Man Reishi Mushroom Kit
- Forest Origins Specialty Trio Mushroom Grow Kit
- Forest Origins Pink Oyster Mushroom Grow Kit
- Willow Mountain Mushrooms White Button Growing Kit
*If you’re in a hurry, I’d recommend the Forest Origins Pink Oyster Mushroom Grow Kit as the best one. This is the highest-rated kit and comes with a 100% guarantee, ensuring that you will have healthy yields no matter how new you are to mushroom growing.
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Back To The Roots Organic Mushroom Growing Kit
This popular grow kit produces brown oyster mushrooms. These mushrooms have a potent and clean flavor that is perfect for soups, sauces, and go well sauteed with meat and vegetables. The kit itself will grow 2 to 3 times
The growing instructions for this kit are incredibly simple. First, you will soak the enclosed bag for 8 hours or overnight. Then make sure to mist it twice a day with the included spray bottle. You can expect your mushrooms to appear in about 7-10 days. Don’t wait too long to harvest them! Those who waited came back to find dehydrated hard mushrooms when they left them too long. If you are growing more than you can eat, store the harvested mushrooms in the fridge as you would with store-bought ones.
Some customers claim that the kit has actually started growing before even being taken out of the box! This often happens to those who purchase the kit and wait a couple of months to begin growing them, due to air and/or moisture making its way into the box. So make sure to get these started right away when you purchase them.
North Spore Lion’s Mane Mushroom Kit
This kit is the best choice for beginners interested in growing lion’s mane mushrooms. They are great for both culinary and medicinal uses and they have a “seafood-like” flavor which makes them a great compliment to fish dishes. They can also be dried and consumed in a tea.
You don’t need to soak your kit in water overnight as you do with many others. All you do is cut an “X” shape into the plastic wrapping around the kit and mist it vigorously with water. Make sure to harvest your mushrooms before they turn yellow and when you begin to see texture on the cap.
Customers have reported getting 2 flushes (yields) from this kit which is about 2 pounds of mushrooms. 3rd flushes occur as well with a much smaller yield.
Mushroom Man Reishi Mushroom Kit
This highly rated growing kit produced reishi mushrooms. These are well known for their medicinal properties that help improve the body’s immune system.
The kit uses a sawdust substrate to grow mushrooms in. The kit comes with everything you will need except for a spray bottle. It comes with good instructions and the company does a good job at answering any additional questions when asked.
The reishi mushroom will take a bit longer to grow than others on this list. Expect to wait up to a month to see them fruit. On the plus size, this kit is low-maintenance and only needs to be misted with water once a week. This makes the kit a great option for those who won’t be home to tend the mushrooms everyday.
Even though these mushrooms are extremely easy to grow, they do require a specific cool temperature. Make sure to keep these between 65F to 75F for optimal yields.
Forest Origins Specialty Trio Mushroom Grow Kit
This kit is great as a sampler for those who want to try growing a variety of mushrooms at once. It comes with brown oyster, white oyster, and pink oyster options. It’s also a great kit for a family of mushroom lovers who would appreciate larger yields. They can produce up to 4 to 5 flushes, over twice as many mushrooms as other kits mentioned in this article!
Many customers have noted that their batches grow quite fast – in some cases, as fast as 3 days! If the manufacturer’s directions are closely followed, this kit is nearly fail-proof. Additionally, they offer a 100% grow guarantee so you know you’ll be getting your money’s worth no matter what happens.
Unlike other kits, these will remain dormant for several months. So if you don’t want to start them right away, you don’t have to worry about accidental growth that occurs inside the packaging. Make sure to store them in a dark space if you’re not going to activate them right away.
Forest Origins Pink Oyster Mushroom Grow Kit
If you’re interested in trying the Forest Origins but don’t want to commit to three growing kits at once, this pink oyster kit is a great way to start with a smaller amount. This variety is good for those who like a mild mushroom flavor or can be picky about strong flavors.
The bright pink colors make this type particularly fun for children to grow. As they get larger, this color will fade. Make sure to harvest these mushrooms when you notice the colors fading and they are approaching 1.5 inches in height.
As mentioned with the previous kit, these mushrooms can grow quite quickly and can have a very high number of flushes, meaning that you will have several yields. Just make sure to regularly mist them. Some customers mist them up to 10 times a day, others will mist them every 12 hours. I suggest you use a humidifier to ensure a consistent stream of moisture to your kit.
Here is how you prepare your kit for a second (third, or even fourth) harvest:
Willow Mountain Mushrooms White Button Growing Kit
This kit produces white button mushrooms, a very popular variety that can be used for virtually any culinary purpose. You can expect to grow up to 4 pounds of mushrooms over a period of 4-6 weeks. This means that this kit yields more mushrooms (on its first flush) than any other kit on this list. This makes it great for big families, mushroom lovers, and those who enjoy gifting their fresh produce to others.
This mushroom growing kit is a great educational tool. It comes with comprehensive instructions that guide you through the growing period and teach you how to observe growth. The setup is easy, you simply open the box and add water to activate.
Make sure to keep this kit in a cool area since these mushrooms really like colder temperatures. They will thrive between 63F to 68F and their optimal temperature is 65F.
Types of Mushrooms You Can Grow
When using a kit to grow mushrooms, you can easily experiment with a wide variety. Some options are:
- sh*take
- Crimini
- Portobello
- Reishi
- Oyster
- Morel
- Lion’s Mane
- Enoki
- White Button
What Is A Mushroom Growing Kit?
While each kit will vary, a mushroom growing kit simplifies the growing process, making it an excellent option for a beginner. Some kits are designed for indoor use while others will work great on your patio or outdoor garden.
The two main types of mushroom kits are log and box sets. With a box, it will be pre-filled with a growing medium and it will have spores inside. If you get a log, it will have drilled holes that are filled with fungal spores. The logs are then covered with wax in order to protect them from insects.
Since these sets come with everything you’ll need to start growing, all you will need to do is remember to keep your mushrooms moist and at a consistent temperature for healthy yields.
Why Use A Mushroom Grow Kit?
Mushroom kits can simplify the growing process significantly. With a kit, there is no need to buy spore needles, substrates, growing mediums, or a container for growth. Each kit will be designed for the specific needs of the type of mushroom you are trying to cultivate, which can be helpful and educational for a beginner.
These kits are also relatively affordable and a low investment if you would like to dabble or experiment with mushroom growing. You could try one at a time, or a few different mushroom varieties, and learn which one you like best.
Although each kit is different, they all require the same general maintenance. You simply set up the materials and add a little water each day. Mushrooms will grow fast, and you may begin to see them rising in about 7 days. In about 2 weeks, they will be ready for harvest.
How To Take Care of Your Mushrooms
Keep Your Kit Moist
You may have noticed that in nature mushrooms usually appear after a heavy rain. Mushrooms love staying hydrated! In addition to moistening your kit daily, you can place it in a more humid area of your home. This could be a garage, basem*nt, or even a laundry room. You can even use a humidifier to promote ideal moisture conditions.
Grow Your Mushrooms In The Right Temperature
Mushrooms thrive at a specific range of temperatures, about 55F-80F. This varies with specific mushrooms. Morels, for example, do well in cool weather and can often be found in spring. This season, as well as fall, is a great time to start your kit.
Simple Harvesting
It’s easier than you think to grow mushrooms to maturity and harvest them. After seven days, you’ll be able to see mushrooms fruiting. At this stage the mushrooms are getting quite sturdy and need less care. You can reduce moistening your kit down to once a day (for the first 7 days you’ll want to moisten them about three times a day).
Your mushrooms will be ready to harvest in 2 to 3 weeks. Just pull or cut them off of the box or log. Rinse them off and eat them instantly, or store them in the fridge. They will last 1 week when refrigerated. If your kit is well maintained, you can possibly get several yields from it!
When you’re done with your kit, you can use the substrate material to create a DIY mushroom growing station, or crumble the material up to use as mulch for your garden.
Summary
Hopefully, you’re hungry after reading a bit about the wonderful world of indoor mushroom gardening! As you can see, there are plenty of options for you to experiment with. These kits are a perfect introduction that may lead to a more advanced mushroom gardening setup. However, with several yields coming out of a single box, you may want to stick with these convenient and easy kits long-term.
