How does one learn about growing mushrooms? The traditional ways are to attend a workshop or grower association event, to read books and articles, or to talk with experienced growers. The newest, and easiest, way is to buy or rent a videotape.
That is why we produced Mushroompeople's Masters of Modern Shiitake series.
Most tapes approx. 25 minutes, recorded in 1993
Audio: $12 Video: $30 (one week rental: $12, return postage included, credit card orders only. Two tapes for one week: $20)
John Cunningham: How to Get an Excellent Spawn Run in Natural Logs Mycologist John Cunningham, Ph.D., has worked with shiitake mushrooms for seven years. Dr. Cunningham is involved with spawn-making, inoculation, pathology, mycology, strain improvement, and weed and disease fungi. He also conducts basic and advanced shiitake seminars several times per year.
Joe Krawczyk: Extending the Growing Season and Year Round Production of Shiitake on Natural Logs Joe Krawczyk has worked with shiitake for 14 years, and presently has 7,000 logs and 1000 bags in production, yielding 70 pounds daily. Joe is a botanist with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, and he and Mary Ellen Kozak run Field & Forest Products of Wisconsin.
Mary Ellen Kozak: Developing and Marketing 'Meal in a Bag' Products for Small Shiitake Growers Mary Ellen Kozak's special area of interest is creating new markets for shiitake growers. She also is a specialist in weed science at the University of Wisconsin--Madison and briefly discusses pests and diseases in shiitake.
James W. Kimbrough: Cultivation of Shiitake and Other Exotic Mushrooms in Taiwan Dr. Kimbrough is a member of the Plant Pathology Department of the University of Florida, who recently viewed firsthand the Chinese methods of cultivating mushrooms.
John Donoghue: Technology Comparisons of Log versus Sawdust Grown Shiitake Mushrooms and John Donoghue: Financial Comparison of Log and Sawdust Grown Shiitake Mushrooms (two tapes) A research scientist, author, founder of Northwest Mycological Associates, and spawn producer working with 8,000 logs and 500 bags of shiitake, John Donoghue harvests approximately 4,000 pounds of shiitake per year.
Daniel Hellmuth and Nicola MacPherson: From the Hills of the Ozarks to the Bistros of St. Louis Daniel F. Hellmuth is Vice President of the family-owned Bald Eagle Company, Timber Farms in the Sinks, Missouri. Nicola MacPherson markets the entire crop to upscale city restaurants and other outlets. Dan and Nikki have 12,000 logs inoculated and harvest about 4,000 pounds of shiitake mushrooms per year. They specialize in production and marketing for outdoor natural logs and are currently experimenting with oyster and pom pom mushrooms.
S. C. Jong: Medicinal and Nutritional Value of the Shiitake Mushrooms Shung-Chang Jong, Ph.D., is a Senior Staff Scientist and the Head of the Mycology and Botany Department of the American Type Culture Collection in charge of the collections of fungi, yeasts, plant tissue cultures, and seeds. He has contributed extensively to collaborative U.S. technology transfer and food technology development programs in China, Taiwan, and Thailand. The author of nearly 170 papers, Dr. Jong is particularly renowned for his investigations into the medicinal benefits of edible mushrooms, including shiitake, and the mushroom's applications in biotechnology.
John Sesock: Shiitake Facilities in Florida--Logs and Sawdust John Sesock, owns the Sesockee Shiitake Mushroom Farm in Perry, Florida, and has been growing shiitake mushrooms for 3 years. He currently has 650 logs and 1,200 bags producing about 13,000 pounds per year. He explains plans to expand his shiitake production to reach 400 pounds per week and to add oyster mushrooms. Clay Olson: Production of Shiitake on Logs in North Florida As the County Extension Director for the Florida Cooperative Extension Service, University of Florida, Clay Olson has worked with shiitake mushrooms for the past five years. He is experimenting with spawn strains on logs using sprinklers in northern Florida. He has conducted five statewide shiitake mushroom conferences covering production on outdoor logs.
Gerald Seibel: Conversion of an Existing Structure for Automation Owner of Seibel Shiitake and a consultant for new or would-be producers, Gerald Seibel is Vice President and member of the board of directors of SHII-GAW, the country's largest shiitake grower's organization. Mr. Seibel has worked with shiitake mushrooms for 8 1/2 years. He currently has 1,000 inoculated logs and harvests about 800 pounds per year, converting a barn for year-round production and easy log handling.
Melvin Baughman: Profit Potential from Growing Shiitake Melvin Baughman, Ph.D., is an Extension Specialist--Forest Resources, at the Department of Forest Resources, University of Minnesota. Dr. Baughman has been working with shiitake mushrooms for about seven years. He teaches forestry economics and specializes in the financial analysis of shiitake production on logs.
Tom E. Kimmons: Shiitake Mushrooms and Community Development A community developer in the hills of Arkansas, Tom E. Kimmons found that shiitake cultivation can provide the means to generate an environmentally sound industry which utilizes local resources and skills while uniting farmers to overcome their economic plight.
Christine Smith: The Artificial Log--Past, Present and Future Christine Smith is a research scientist and mushroom geneticist with Lambert Spawn Company in Pennsylvania.
Paul Goland: The Market for American Dried Shiitake Mushrooms Founder of Hardscrabble Enterprises in West Virginia. Paul Goland has worked with shiitake mushrooms for the past 14 years. He currently has 800 logs in production. Paul teaches a shiitake course at Bear Mountain Outdoor School in Hightown, Virginia. He has cosponsored, along with the West Virginia Department of Agriculture, six Annual Shiitake Growers Conferences.
Chris Burnett: Woodland Mushroom Production as Sustainable Agriculture: A Forester's Perspective Dr. Burnett is the owner of Big Creek Farm, which currently has 800 logs which produce about 80 pounds of shiitake per year. He specializes in bedlog production, strain selection and is very knowledgeable in silviculture. He has developed a microcomputer spreadsheet for financial planning of a shiitake mushroom operation. Chris is also involved in small scale production of oyster mushrooms on aspen.
Many of these tapes have been reviewed in The Mushroom Growers Newsletter (contact: MycoWorld@aol.com for back issues).
Other tapes from GVV include:
Sasha Shulgin in Telluride
Audiotape $12 Videotape $30
Recorded live at the Golden Nugget Theatre, the noted author spins humorous tales of how NIMH and DEA collaborated to develop 179 new mind-manifesting drugs.
The Soma Seminar
Audiotape $12 Videotape $30
Reknowned mycologists Emanuel Salzman, Walter Johnson, Andrew Weil, and Mark Niemoeller discuss the varieties of experience following ingestion of Amanita muscaria. Included is a neo-Vedic fermentation recipe for producing Soma.
To request a printed a copy of the Mushroompeople catalog, or place an order, you can contact us at:
Email: mushroom@thefarm.org
Int'l Voice/Fax: (int. code +) 931-964-2200
U.S. Fax: 1-800-386-4496
Or write us at:
Mushroompeople
PO Box 220 / 560 Farm Rd.
Summertown TN 38483-0220
Mastercard and visa accepted. Se habla español.
Other Mushroom Videos:
Shiitake How-To - all phases of cultivating in natural logs $20, $12/week rental.
Shiitake Cultivation in Japan
Bob Harris
The material in this tape is the assimilation of our travels over several years to Japan to learn the modern methods of cultivation used to grow mushrooms on oak hardwood logs. This tape is an excellent introduction to the cultivation of Shiitake and contains some very important growing tips. VHS or BETA 21 min. $20.00, $12/week rental
Mushroom Growing Magic
In the hands of an expert, learning sterile lab culture can seem almost effortless.
86 min. $55, $16/week rental, return postage included,
credit card orders only.
In a hurry? We can expedite your order and ship by Overnight Courier.