Culinary Mushroom Log Workshop 5/3 at the Hurt LEAP Community Garden

Name: Culinary Mushroom Log Workshop 5/3 at the Hurt LEAP Community Garden
Start: 2026-05-03T14:30:00-04:00
End: 2026-05-03T15:30:00-04:00
Location: Hurt LEAP Community Garden Roanoke

Schedule

Sun May 03 2026 at 02:30 pm to 03:30 pm

UTC-04:00

Location

Hurt LEAP Community Garden Roanoke | Roanoke, VA

We know how mysterious and confusing growing mushrooms can feel at first. After twelve years of working with fungi, we’ve learned how simple and rewarding it can actually be. In this workshop, we’ll guide you step by step so you can start your own mushroom garden at home.
A small stack of mushroom logs in a shady area of your yard can produce fresh gourmet mushrooms for years with very little maintenance.
Hosted by Mr. Mushroom Harder of Harder Mushrooms and LEAP (the Local Environmental Agriculture Project)
Join us in Roanoke at the LEAP Hurt Park Community Garden and learn how to grow "backyard" DIY mushrooms, at home.
If you have a shady spot in your yard, you can grow mushrooms! We’ll show you how and introduce you to their incredible world.

Sunday May 3rd
2:30–3:30 PM
Hurt Park Community Garden
1718 Salem Ave SW
Roanoke, VA
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Choose Your Mushrooms:
Participants will inoculate one or two hardwood logs and can choose which gourmet mushroom varieties they would like to grow.
Available varieties include:
• Shiitake (8-12 mo till first crop) *The best log grown performer and the only one you can soak to force fruit (every 8 weeks in the summer) everything else fruits seasonally in the spring and fall.
• Oyster (Blue and Golden 3-6 mo till first crop)
• Comb's Tooth (a close relative of Lion's Mane that grows very well on logs -> 6-9 mo till first crop)
• Chestnut mushrooms (3-6 mo till first crop)
With proper care, most participants harvest their first mushrooms within 6–12 months, and the logs can continue producing for 4–5 years or more.
Couples and families are welcome to attend together.
Just let us know the total number of logs your group would like to make.
Spots are limited due to equipment and space, but there is street parking and a shelter available.
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What You’ll Learn

• How mushrooms grow inside a hardwood log
• The basics of mushroom biology
• Log selection and preparation
• Proper inoculation techniques
• How to care for and fruit your logs at home
You will leave with the knowledge and confidence to continue growing mushrooms in your own yard.

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Continue Growing at Home:
Thanks to our mushroom lab, we will also have additional mushroom spawn available if you want to expand your mushroom garden beyond your first logs.
Spawn is the fungal equivalent to seeds or transplants. The sawdust spawn used in this workshop can inoculate approximately 20+ logs per block, with the proper tools. Plug spawn requires only a drill and hammer and is sold in different quantities depending on how many logs you want to make.

We will have locally tested varieties of:

• Additional shiitake and specialty mushroom spawns available
• Plug spawn (great for beginners - no special tools required)
• Sawdust spawn (great for making lots of logs)
• Ready to fruit, table top mushroom farm kits
• Other mushroom cultivation supplies
- Spawn can be stored in the refrigerator for 6 to 12 months.
Many participants decide to expand their mushroom garden after the workshop, so we will have additional spawn and supplies available if you would like to continue making logs at home. If you know you would like additional materials, we recommend preordering so we can have your items prepared. Some varieties of spawn are made to order.

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This workshop is rain or shine. We have a covered shelter thanks to the community garden.

Please bring:
• Eye protection or sunglasses
• Gloves if preferred
• Water bottle
Take home instructions will be provided.
More Info and to sign up:
https://hardermushroomsworkshops.square.site/