
The Mycovibe Library
In-depth, practical reading on the science of fungi and growing gourmet mushrooms at home.
Growing gourmet mushrooms
Step-by-step guides to growing edible gourmet species such as oyster, lion’s mane and shiitake, from your first spore print to agar work, liquid culture, cloning and harvest. Start with the overview, then follow the stages in order.
-

Gourmet Mushroom Cultivation: From Spore to Harvest
An overview of the whole gourmet mushroom growing process: the different starting points, how each stage leads to the next, and which guide to read…
-

How to Take a Spore Print
A simple overnight project that reveals a mushroom’s spore colour and gill pattern, with tips for clean, sharp prints from gourmet species like oyster and…
-

Working with Agar: A Guide for Gourmet Growers
How to make agar plates, inoculate them from spores, liquid culture or tissue, and use transfers to isolate clean, vigorous gourmet mushroom cultures.
-

How to Clone a Gourmet Mushroom from Tissue
Copy the genetics of a great oyster, shiitake or lion’s mane mushroom by growing a piece of its tissue on agar. A step-by-step guide with…
-

How to Use Liquid Culture to Grow Gourmet Mushrooms
A beginner’s guide to inoculating sterilised grain with gourmet mushroom liquid culture, from setting up a clean workspace to spotting contamination.
-

How to Prepare Grain Spawn for Gourmet Mushrooms
Rinse, soak, simmer, dry and sterilise: how to prepare grain jars and bags that gourmet mushroom mycelium will colonise quickly and cleanly.
-

How to Pasteurise Straw for Growing Oyster Mushrooms
Straw is the cheapest, easiest substrate for oyster mushrooms. Here are three ways to pasteurise it at home, plus how to spawn and pack your…
-

How to Build a Fruiting Chamber for Gourmet Mushrooms
Three fruiting chamber set-ups for home growers, from a simple humidity tent to a shelving-unit martha, plus how to balance humidity, fresh air and light.
-

How to Grow Lion’s Mane Mushrooms at Home
Grow your own lion’s mane from a ready-to-fruit block or your own spawn: the conditions it likes, how to fruit it, and when to harvest.
-

Identifying Contamination in Mushroom Cultivation
How to tell healthy mycelium from the common moulds and bacteria that ruin home grows, what causes each one, and what to do when you…
Our growing guides cover edible gourmet species only. Cultivating psilocybin-containing mushrooms is illegal in the UK, and our microscopy spore samples are sold strictly for microscopy and taxonomic study.
