Usually you try to avoid live fungi in your house. But growing mushrooms can be tons of fun, especially with a mushroom growing kit.
Whether you want to grow mushrooms for your cooking, a school project, or the amazing health benefits (like supporting your immune system, protecting against cancer, and supporting your heart health), using a growing kit makes the process quick and easy, supplying you with all of the necessary tools to grow mushrooms.
Perfect for anyone, whether you’re an avid gardener or someone who counts the old, sprouted potato in your cupboard as the only thing that you have “grown,” these kits are a fun project with a great outcome: delicious, beautiful mushrooms.
Below are some tips for purchasing mushroom kits and reviews of some of the best kits on the market now.
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What is a Mushroom Growing Kit?
Broken down, a mushroom growing kit is simply mushroom mycelium growing on a substrate. The substrate could be straw, logs, sawdust, a combination of these things, you name it. The kit delivers the mushrooms to you just before they begin to truly grow. Raising them into maturity is up to you.
Why Use a Mushroom Growing Kit?
The most obvious reason for using a mushroom growing kit is that they make growing mushrooms easy. Most kits require minimal work but produce a continual harvest of mushrooms.
Mushroom growing kits are a great project: you get to watch beautiful, unusual mushrooms grow, and you get to harvest them once they mature. These kits can be awesome for beginner gardeners or kids who are just learning about gardening.
Kits often end up being cost-effective, too, producing enough mushrooms to offset the cost of the kit through savings at the grocery store.
Types of Mushrooms
There are more than 10,000 types of mushrooms. Narrowing down that number quite a bit, I have included the four most common types of edible mushrooms to grow using a mushroom growing kit.
Shiitake
Shiitake mushrooms are one of the most common types of mushrooms. They are recognizable for their umbrella caps that are brown and slightly curled. They are a great mushroom to cook with, having a dense texture and a light woodsy flavor and aroma. Often they can be used in vegetarian dishes as a meat substitute and if you dry them out, their flavor intensifies significantly. They also have lots of medicinal properties and are packed with nutrients.
Oyster
Oyster mushrooms are one of the most popular mushrooms to grow from kits. This is partly because of their delicious taste and partly because of their striking, fan-shaped growing pattern.
They have a distinct, light odor, a soft texture, and a subtle flavor. Often, they are used in Asian dishes. Oyster mushrooms, in particular, are known for their ability to lower cholesterol.
Morel
Morel mushrooms are not as common as some other mushroom types but are often sought after because of their delicious taste and unusual look. These mushrooms are light brown, cone-shaped, and look sponge-like. Their flavor is strong, tasting vaguely smoky and nutty. The advantage of growing them is they are one of the more expensive kinds of mushrooms to buy.
Portabella
Portabella mushrooms are one of the most common varieties in American grocery stores and restaurants. They have flat caps and white-and-light brown coloring. They are dense, rich in flavor, and work well grilled, in stuffing, or in sauces. These mushrooms are commonly used in Italian cooking.
To explore some of the other awesome types of mushrooms, check out the video below.
Features to Consider When Choosing Your Kit
The features your mushroom growing kit has can greatly impact your mushroom growing experience. To figure out what your mushroom growing kit preferences are, peruse the features below.
Growing Medium
Growing kits greatly vary in what substrates they use and what containers they use to hold in those substrates. Some mushroom growing kits use bags, others use logs, others have you grow your mushrooms right inside the box they came in. To choose what growing medium you want to work with, consider how hands-on you want to be in the mushroom growing process. Also, consider what aesthetic you are looking for in growing your mushrooms. Mushrooms are beautiful, unusual fungi. You might find them more appealing to look at coming out of an elegant pink block than a box with neon block writing on it.
Level of Difficulty
Mushroom growing kits make growing mushrooms easy. However, not every kit is created with the same level of “easy” in mind. Some are for complete beginners, while others are better for intermediate growers. Some will require very little effort or upkeep, while others will require careful, timely maintenance.
Check to see how much work your kit requires, what tools it requires, and what the life cycle is of the mushrooms you grow within it.
Growth Cycle
You would never start a trip without knowing how long it’s going to take you to drive to your destination. The same logic applies to mushroom growing kits.
Before purchasing your kit, check to see how long it’s going to take you to actually grow the mushrooms within it.Different mushrooms take different amounts of time to grow. For example, oyster mushrooms only take a month while morels may take a few months. Also, some kits arrive farther along than others, so they have a shorter maturation time.
Read up on your chosen kit before buying it!
Additional Tips For Growing Mushrooms at Home
Here are some quick tips for ensuring that you get the most out of your mushroom growing kit!
- Mushrooms will thrive if you keep your home temperature between 65-70 F. Mushrooms love cool, dark, damp growing conditions.
- If your kit requires you to fertilize your mushrooms at all, a great option for doing so is mushroom compost.
- Water your mushrooms regularly: they love moisture!
- Although some kits are capable of storing, it is always best to use your mushroom growing kit as soon as possible.
Top 5 Best Mushroom Growing Kit Reviews
Now that you are convinced using a mushroom growing kit should be your next project, time to pick one out for yourself. Below are the 5 best mushroom growing kits. They have a range of growth methods, mediums, mushroom types, and difficulty levels, so there should be a kit that appeals to everyone!
This mushroom growing kit is extremely easy to use. Just open the box, soak the bag, and mist the mushrooms and you will have gorgeous oyster mushrooms in just 10 days
- 100% Growth Guarantee
- Great For Kids
- Inexpensive
- Not Very Hands-On
- Not the Most Elegant Growth Medium
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The Back To The Roots Oyster Mushroom Growing Kit is perfect for anyone who finds mushroom growing to be an appealing project because of how easy it is.
You simply soak the substrate, put it back in the box, mist the mushrooms every day, and in ten days you will have beautiful oyster mushrooms.
That’s it. It is quite literally that easy.
These mushrooms are guaranteed to grow, so no need to worry about messing up one of the two simple steps in the growing process. They are also certified non-GMO and certified organic by the USDA.
It is so easy to grow these mushrooms that some might view the simplicity as a downside. If you want a more hands-on mushroom growing experience, then this is not the kit for you. However, if you are like me, and are content to sit back and watch some mushrooms grow, then this is your best choice.
This kit isn’t just low-commitment workwise, it is also low-impact for your wallet, being one of the least expensive kits on the market.
This kit is great for adults who are beginner gardeners and is perfect for kids. It’s geared towards them, actually, possessing a bright design, a Mushroom Discovery Book, and access to a STEM curriculum online.
This mushroom growing kit creates truly beautiful pink oyster mushrooms. They not only look great, they also taste great.
- Rare Pink Oyster Mushrooms
- 100% Growth Guarantee
- Great For Kids
- Mushroom Flavor Can Vary
- Longer Growth Time
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The Pink Oyster Mushroom Growing Kit is undeniably one of the prettiest kits for growing mushrooms.
Not only does it possess an elegant soft pink base, but it also sprouts gorgeous, vividly pink mushrooms.
This kit provides you with absolutely everything you need to grow your own mushrooms- just add water! It has a 100% growth guarantee too, so no worries about messing anything up. If somehow you do, and your mushrooms don’t grow, you can ask for another kit or your money back.
An unusual feature of this kit is that it can last many months, unopened, without the mushrooms starting to grow. This feature makes it a great gift option. After all, who wouldn’t want bright pink mushrooms growing in their home?
Once you do open the box and prepare your mushrooms, you simply have to mist them on a regular basis, and in a few weeks’ time, they will be fully grown and ready to be eaten.
That the growth time is longer than some of the other mushroom kits could be seen as a downside. However, it just gives you more time to admire these beautiful pink mushrooms before you eat them!It is an easy kit to use, perfect for pink-loving adults or kids.
This kit may require more work than some of the other ones, but it is still extremely easy to use. It also produces absolutely delicious shiitake mushrooms.
- Easy to Use
- Includes Everything You Could Need
- Continual Harvest
- Needs to be Used Immediately
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Containing one Ready to Fruit shiitake mushroom log, a humidity tent, and a spray bottle, this kit has everything you could possibly need to grow, and then harvest, mouth-watering shiitake mushrooms.
You won’t have to wait for your mushrooms for long either. It takes as little as 4 days for the mushrooms to grow. You can then harvest them continually in 10-day intervals for up to 16 weeks.
The only downside of these mushrooms' quick-grow time is that they must be started as soon as you receive them. They can last in the fridge for 1 week before being started, at the most. Because of this, this kit is not a great gift option.
This product is best suited for beginner to intermediate gardeners who love the idea of a continual harvest of shiitake mushrooms. It has detailed instructions to guide you along your mushroom-growing way, but it’s definitely more hands-on than the previous two kits I reviewed.
This kit may require more work than some of the other ones, but it is still extremely easy to use. It also produces absolutely delicious shiitake mushrooms.
This hands-on mushroom growing kit may take more work but is totally worth it if you love the unique taste of morel mushrooms.
- Delicious Morel Mushrooms
- Hands-on Experience
- Satisfaction Guarantee
- Takes a Long Time
- Vague Instructions
- Growing Outdoors
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If you are a morel mushroom fan, then this is the kit for you.
Does it have a higher difficulty level than any of the other kits reviewed?Yes!Will it produce you with a continual supply of morel mushrooms?Sure thing!Does that make it all worth it? Absolutely!
This kit includes everything you need to grow morel mushrooms in your backyard and step-by-step instructions to lead you through the growing process.
Admittedly, those instructions are a bit vague which is part of why this is a kit for people who have some mushroom growing experience or who are intermediate gardeners.
It also requires you to grow the mushrooms outdoors which can introduce a whole host of problems into the mushroom growing process.
Also, although the kit promises that the mushrooms will grow fast, that isn’t always the case.
Don’t worry though, if anything does go wrong, they make a satisfaction guarantee promise. If the mushrooms don’t grow then you get your money back.
Just grit your teeth, think about the morel mushrooms at the end of the rainbow, and put the work into this kit. It will reward you.
This simple to set-up mushroom growing kit has a continual harvest of absolutely delicious portabella mushrooms.
- Grows Fast
- Great For Kids
- Continual Harvest
- Can Form Mold
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If you love portabella mushrooms, which, who doesn’t, then the White Button Mushroom Growing Kit is perfect for you.
It only takes 4-6 weeks for the mushrooms to grow, which is longer than most of their kits, but once the mushrooms do start growing, you will get to watch them double in size every 24 hours.
Not to mention, after the 4-6 weeks, you will be able to harvest these mushrooms continually every 2 weeks.
This kit produces a lot of mushrooms; your expected harvest could be as large as 4 pounds.
Feel free to eat those 4 pounds of mushrooms without guilt, these mushrooms are certified organic and are shipped fresh from farms in the Missouri Ozarks.
This is a great kit for beginners and kids because it’s an easy quick project, supplying you with everything you need to grow portabella mushrooms and detailed instructions to help you along every step of the way.
Conclusion
The clear winner of this roundup is the Back To The Roots Oyster Mushroom Growing Kit.
Why?
Because it embodies the goal of mushroom growing kits: to make mushroom growing easy.
You need no extra tools, no mushroom growing knowledge, not even a container to hold the mushrooms. You literally can grow them in the box they came in. If that isn’t easy I don’t know what is.
This kit has a shorter time span for producing mushrooms than most of the other kits, only taking 10 days, however, it also doesn’t require you to use it right away.
Not to mention how delicious and beautiful oyster mushrooms are.
Of course, although the Back To The Roots Oyster Mushroom Growing Kit is the best kit on this list, all of the kits included are excellent.
If you prefer growing a different type of mushroom or one of the other kits sparked your interest, go for that one.
Have fun growing your fungi!
If you liked this guide, be sure to share, and as always, feel free to comment with thoughts and questions!
