Spore to love: Whether farm fresh or homegrown, mushroom gardening is sprouting new fans

Jun. 22—Should you find yourself wandering in your local Home Depot considering if an organic mushroom kit is worth your while, you might be pleasantly surprised by the harvest.

Zach Zientek's small $20 kit morphed into a business venture cultivating gourmet mushrooms.

When Mr. Zientek, 27, of Pemberville bought his first mushroom kit in 2015, he had no idea he'd start Z Farms — one of the only mushroom farms in northwest Ohio — in the basement of his home.

"At Home Depot they have these grow your own mushroom kits that come in little bags filled with substrate and have mushroom mycelium colonizing it. All you do is cut the bags open and keep it humid. I got one of those little kits and did it on my kitchen counter. It was pretty satisfying to be able to grow something fairly quick and simply," he said.

He isn't alone in his satisfaction. Amy Stone, extension educator with the Ohio State Extension in Lucas County, said there has been a budding interest in mushrooms amid the pandemic.

"I feel that there was a growing interest in the past, but as a result of the pandemic last year, people were exploring things to do at home more than ever," she said.

In fact, according to the wellness-focused data analytic company SPINS, in 2020 mushroom sales grew by 46 percent compared to 2019, reaching $14.7 million in sales. Data showed that the spike in sales caused mushrooms to secure a spot as one of the 25 best-selling ingredients in the natural channel.

While the demand in sales has increased over the years, mushroom farmers in the northwest Ohio region are still scarce.

Mr. Zientek debuted his gourmet mushrooms, which include blue, pink, and white oysters, lion's mane, and shiitake, and chestnut mushrooms, at the Bowling Green Farmers Market in 2018. Mr. Zientek said he founded Z Farms after realizing that locally grown gourmet mushrooms were a niche market.

"No one had been doing this locally or in northwest Ohio. I saw that it was something I needed to focus on," Mr. Zientek said.

As a result of the demand, Mr. Zientek now sells mushrooms at both the Toledo Farmers' Market and Bowling Green Farmers Market.

"I have not been able to keep up with the demand at the Toledo market, especially now that it's an all-year market. I'm growing mushrooms all year long too. Even in the dead of winter when you'd think there's no local produce available, I'm still there with fresh mushrooms," he said.

He also sells to local restaurants including Souk Mediterranean Kitchen and Bar, Registry Bar, and Plat8.

Mr. Zientek sells the mushrooms for $15 per pound and harvests nearly 80 pounds per week.

Local farmer Thomas Lodge said he believes the trajectory of local mushroom farming will trend upward as local consumption of gourmet mushrooms continues to increase.

"People are learning about it at their farmers' markets, hearing about it from friends, or trying new dishes at the local restaurants. A few years ago the gourmet mushrooms were seen as a weird thing on Zach's table. Now there's a steady base of regulars and people who are curious to try new things," Mr. Lodge said.

After meeting at a local farmers' market, both Mr. Zientek and Mr. Lodge, 34, found themselves as guests on a local radio show. The two were both discussing farming and mushroom cultivation on the radio show at the time.

"When I started wanting to do this mushroom thing I saw Zach as a competitor. I thought, 'Oh, someone's already doing this and I don't know if there's enough demand in Toledo,' but after the radio interview we figured out how to make it best work for the both of us and split up the jobs based on the spaces we had available," Mr. Lodge said.

While Mr. Lodge does not cultivate mushrooms for profit, he does assist Mr. Zientek with his manufacturing process. Mr. Lodge builds blocks — man-made platforms for mushrooms to sprout from, just as they would sprout from logs in nature — in his lab located in the Secor Building in downtown Toledo. He makes roughly 50 blocks twice a week for Mr. Zientek. Each block takes roughly three weeks to complete.

Mr. Lodge said he enjoys working with Mr. Zientek, as he values local produce.

"I really like that we're taking some of the local agricultural waste and turning it into good food. Mushrooms are a delicious source of nutrients, protein and vitamin D. We're taking waste and growing something healthy for the community," Mr. Lodge said.

For more information on Mr. Zientek's mushrooms go to z-farms.com.