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market-farming - Re: [Market-farming] Shiitake Mushrooms

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  • From: "MARK A. ABNER" <wizard1 AT kih.net>
  • To: "Market Farming" <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Shiitake Mushrooms
  • Date: Wed, 4 Jan 2006 11:46:04 -0500

Toni
I attended to Dec workshop at sheltowee. You should have been there
dang
it : ) . I learned a great deal, he had a massive operation and a huge
investment in his operation and the expansions he is putting in for indoor
year round growing of shitaki in sawdust blocks. He has an autoclave 15
feet long.
I can see where someone as close to him as your are could well make
some
productive income from a log operation if you have the physical strength to
handle to logs for the soaking process. I am sure you could secure a source
of white oak logs ( logs is realy a misnomer we are talking about little
poles 42 inches long and about 4-6 inches in diamiter) the only hard part
really is loading them into your soaking tank and lifting them back out.
I gave it some serious thought but being 3 hours + away from him I
can see
dilivery could be problematic unless I was producueing a large volume at a
time transpertation cost could out way profitability. To produce the volume
needed to reach serious levels of production would take more time than I
want to commit to the project as it would take time away from my vegitable
and livestock operations.
I will proabably do a couple hundred shitake logs just for my own use
and
for my csa customers and farmer market how ever as well as some oyster
mushrooms and possibly some other varities that can be grown on pastureized
straw and wood chip media in garden beds fpr the same purposes.
I think mushroom production is a viable agricultural entereprise and
probably the easiest type of ag to get organic certification on. But to
make serious amounts of money at it I think you have to work it just that
like any mono culture agriculture just work on mushrooms all the time and
my focus has allways been diversity.
It is very exciteing how ever to see folks like Billy tackleing new
things
of this nature head on with major investments and long term dedication to
see the enterprise through that is what it takes to develop new types of
production and new market sources and the level of energy and excitement
and willingness to share knowledge and wisdom gained is inspireing. Any one
the is interested in seeing alternitive agriculture in action and is close
enough to should make the effort to attend one of Billys work shops and see
what he is doing : ).
Also the workshops that Paul and Alison do on high tunnel production
are
well worth the effort to attend : ) I hope to be putting in a 20 x 96 foot
high tunnel this year as well as starting a couple hundred shitaki logs to
follow up on what I have learned from attending both of these workshops : )


Mark Abner
BriarPatch Farms
Ritner KY zone 6b

Two of the other
> coaches in training and graduated are Billy & Rebecca Webb - who own
> Sheltowee Farm near Morehead..........i really like and respect these
> folks and what they are building! Last i heard, they are looking for
> other farmers who would grow in co-operation with their
> enterprise.....






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