containers of specialty mushrooms displayed at farmers market

Specialty Mushrooms

Project Lead: Connor Youngerman, Yolanda Gonzalez

Our project offers the leading extension resource for specialty mushroom cultivation on small farms in the United States.

Specialty mushrooms are defined by USDA as any species not belonging to the genus Agaricus (button, crimini, portabella). The most common specialty mushrooms produced are Shiitake (Lentinula edodes) and Oyster (Pleuterous ostreatus). Scroll down for our library of resources to help you grow better!

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Kacey Deamer / Cornell Small Farms Program

Demand for specialty mushrooms is rapidly rising, as consumers look to purchase more foods that are healthy, nutritious, and medicinal. There are methods to grow mushrooms outdoor systems on logs, stumps, and in beds, as well as indoor production techniques that can occur in a wide range of spaces on straw, sawdust, and other agricultural materials.

For urban growers, mushrooms offer a high value niche crop that can be grown in small spaces. For rural growers, the farm woodlot can be better utilized and healthy forests maintained while procuring materials for production.

Building a viable mushroom enterprise requires learning two skills; technical production and business planning. We help you develop both to meet your goals for production through factsheets and articles, guidebooks, videos, and opportunities to connect with other growers, industry suppliers, and more.

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Mushroom Resources

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Events

Events

Today

  • Starting Shiitake Mushrooms

    Cornell Cooperative Extension of Warren County 377 Schroon River Road, Warrensburg, NY, United States

    Cornell Cooperative Extension of Warren County will be holding a “Starting Shiitake Mushrooms” workshop on Friday, July 10, at 3:00 pm. This program is perfect for the very beginner as […]

    $20

News and Updates

  • Learn to grow mushrooms at 11th Annual Camp Mushroom

    by

    Steve Gabriel

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    June 3 – 4 Hidden Valley Camp, Watkins Glen NY Friday 5 – 9pm, Saturday 9 am – 4pm Camp Mushroom is Cornell University’s annual two-day event for farmers, woodlot owners, and hobby growers who want to cultivate their own shiitake, oyster, lions mane, and stropharia mushrooms. This year marks the 11th year of the…

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  • Learn about Farm Scale Commercials Mushroom Production

    by

    Tara Hammonds

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    Farm Scale Mushroom Cultivation (BF 150) Growing Shiitake and Other Mushrooms for Fun and Profit an online course through the Northeast Beginning Farmer Project Tues. February 23 – March 29, 2016, with webinars held each Tuesday evening from 6:30-8:00pm. http://www.nebeginningfarmers.org/online-courses/all-courses/woodland-mushroom-cultivation-bf-150/ Mushrooms are an emerging niche crop with many benefits, including improving farmer stewardship of forested…

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  • Getting Started Right for Successful Ginseng Production

    by

    Bob Beyfuss

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    Commercial ginseng production has a long history and affiliation with Cornell University. I have a collection of Cornell publications dating from as early as 1904 on topics as specific as “Phytopthora Root Rot of Ginseng” and as general as “Diseases of Ginseng”. At one time, circa 1910, there were as many as 5,000 ginseng farms…

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  • Lion's Mane: A new candidate for profitable forest mushroom cultivation

    by

    Tara Hammonds

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    by Ken Mudge Forest cultivation of shiitake mushrooms has become one of the most important non- timber forest crops in the Northeast. Well-established methods of cultivation, along with strong market demand for log cultivated shiitake, have made it a fairly reliable crop for experienced as well as beginning forest farmers. Yet, Shiitake is only one…

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  • Growing Mushrooms for Fun and Profit

    by

    Rebecca Hargrave

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      In the Fall 2009 issue of Small Farms Quarterly, Mike Farrell wrote an introductory article on some agroforestry topics, including maple syrup production and nuts. There are dozens of other crops that can be farmed in the understory of a forest including ginseng, floral and ornamental crops, specialty wood products, fruits, and mushrooms. Most…

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See the full archive from Cornell Mushrooms

Project Partners

The Cornell Small Farms Program, with support from USDA-NIFA and USDA-SARE and alongside partners CCE Harvest NY, Fungi Ally, Farm School NYC, Just Food, and GrowNYC are engaged in a multi-year project to elevate and support diverse mushroom growers in the Northeast region. We are here to help! See our resources at this website, and get in touch.

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About Connor Youngerman

As the Agroforestry and Mushroom Specialist, Connor applies his skills and experience toward climate resiliency outreach for new, established, and historically excluded farmers. His particular interests lie in advancing research and education for agroforestry and tree nursery management, medicinal agroforestry crops, and novel mushroom substrates. He believes these areas hold huge potential to diversify the ecological and economic portfolio of small-scale farmers.

Read Articles by Connor Youngerman

containers of specialty mushrooms displayed at farmers market
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