Southwest Mushrooms, owned by Michael Crowe, cultivates various gourmet and medicinal mushrooms in a balance between science and art. Crowe explains the process of growing mushrooms, starting with spores rather than seeds, and how mycelium growth is transferred to bags of sterilized grain. The bags go through the sterilization process to kill microorganisms and competitor molds or fungi. Crowe emphasizes the importance of good spawn for quality mushroom production and the need for care to grow the fungi desired. The company uses oak hardwood sawdust and organic wheat brand with specific seed wholes to form its substrate. The sterilization room can sterilize up to 1,600 pounds of fresh substrate at a time. The company grows shiitake mushrooms in an incubation area for eight weeks before moving them into the fruiting room. Southwest Mushrooms also cultivates Cordyceps, known for its anti-viral, anti-bacterial properties, and Reishi, known as the mushroom of immortality, which has been shown to shrink and terminate tumor growth. Crowe explains the importance of mushrooms to the environment and how without them, the world would be overrun with waste and life on earth would not exist.
Learn more: https://southwestmushrooms.com/