Archive
The Cultivation Library
Every long-form video from the farm, written out in full. Lab work, grain spawn, substrate, sterilization, fruiting, and harvest, said out loud while doing it. This is field material, not textbook material. These are archive recordings from the years the Phoenix farm ran commercially, so the present tense in them describes the farm as it was then.
- Entries
- 68
- Words
- 131,872
- Hours
- 15.4
- Years
- 2020–26
The whole archive is also available as a downloadable dataset, free and without signup.
2026
The Mushroom Grower - Vol IV: The Harvest
Shiitake blocks are harvested at scale, with comparisons to reishi and oyster timelines and a practical method for trimming clean clusters.
The Mushroom Grower - Vol III: The Grow
Covers mushroom production from cultures and grain spawn through sawdust block inoculation, incubation, mycelial colonization, and preparation for grow room fruiting.
The Craft of Cultivation | The Mushroom Grower Vol. I : Part II
A grower examines liquid cultures, oyster and lion’s mane spawn, experimental cordyceps plates, and grain choices for producing mushroom blocks.
The Mushroom Grower - Vol II: The Substrate
Southwest Mushrooms compares straw, soy hull, and oak-based substrates, reviewing oyster yields, lab handling, and the master’s mix used for fast-fruiting species.
From Spore to Medicine: How a Mushroom Is Really Made
A sterile lab process follows mushroom cultivation from agar culture to grain spawn, hardwood substrate colonization, and medicinal fruiting body production.
Inside a Real Commercial Mushroom Lab | The Mushroom Grower Vol. I: Lab Work
A commercial grower explains lab setup, HEPA flow hoods, clean culture work, grain spawn production, and hygiene practices for reducing contamination.
2025
A Journey Into Mycology : Exploring the Art & Science of Mushrooms
A farm tour covers lion’s mane harvesting, medicinal mushroom uses, cultivation techniques, and market-driven production at Southwest Mushrooms.
Inside Our Mushroom Cultivation Facility | Full Tour of Southwest Mushrooms
A tour of Southwest Mushrooms shows substrate mixing, bag filling, sterilization, and the production workflow behind shiitake, reishi, oysters, and lion’s mane.
Mushroom Cultivation Q&A with Michael Crowe | Tips from Years in the Grow Room
Michael Crowe discusses his self-taught path into mycology, building Southwest Mushrooms, and practical cultivation lessons from years in the grow room.
How We Grow and Harvest Reishi Mushrooms | Functional Fungi
Harvesting reishi mushrooms at Southwest Mushrooms covers antler and conk growth, woody texture, medicinal uses, and adjusting production to market demand.
DIY Mycology: Resourceful Tips for Liquid Culture & Lab Work
A home mycology demonstration covers honey-based liquid culture, pressure sterilization, sterile injection, grain spawn inoculation, and practical Petri dish wrapping alternatives.
9 Minutes & 20 Seconds of Shiitake Harvesting With Michael Crowe
Michael Crowe harvests shiitake blocks, explaining cap maturity, shelf-life benefits, careful cutting, and why bagless fruiting improves mushroom quality.
2024
Maitake Mushroom Production Blocks
Maitake production blocks show early globular growth, branching frond formation, and the meaty edible texture of harvested hen-of-the-woods pieces.
How to Use All-American Pressure Sterilizers for Mushroom Cultivation
Demonstrates loading, venting, and running an All-American pressure sterilizer to prepare mushroom substrate blocks safely and consistently.
Lion’s Mane Mushrooms
Lion’s mane mushrooms are described by their tooth-like spore structures, pom-pom growth, meaty texture, and uses in sautés, stir-fries, rice dishes, and tacos.
Setting Up New Wheat Grain Spawn Trials
Several locally sourced wheat varieties are hydrated, bagged, sterilized, and prepared for inoculation to compare their performance as mushroom grain spawn.
Shipping Mushroom Grow Kits, Mycelium Liquid Cultures and Grain Spawn
Southwest Mushrooms packages online orders, including liquid cultures, agar plates, grain spawn, and sterilized substrate, with protective wrapping and secure packing.
2023
Inside Mushroom Farm Consulting | Real Solutions from Southwest Mushrooms
Southwest Mushrooms demonstrates farm consulting through grow kit harvest timing, order packing, equipment sourcing, substrate inputs, and chestnut mushroom quality decisions.
You Can Grow All These Mushrooms
A tour of Southwest Mushrooms highlights comb tooth, chestnut, and other cultivated varieties, covering growth stages, harvest timing, flavors, and culinary uses.
2022
Gourmet Mushroom Harvest Lion's Mane, Turkey Tail, Chestnut, & Reishi
A grow room harvest covers chestnut clusters, lion’s mane cleaning and packing, plus notes on reishi, turkey tail, and second-flush fruiting.
Making Mushroom Grain Spawn in the Lab with Mushroom Liquid Culture
Lab staff prepare generation-one mushroom grain spawn bags from agar wedges and liquid culture, covering sterile grain handling, sanitation, and spawn expansion for production.
2021
Blue Oyster Alla Gricia with Chef Zion
Chef Zion prepares blue oyster mushroom alla gricia with guanciale, pecorino romano, and a slow-rendered sauce inspired by classic Roman pasta.
Testing New Mushroom Strains
The farm harvests final oyster flushes, observes where new pins form, and checks trial blocks of Hericium and other mushroom strains.
Quick Mixed Box Mushroom Harvest
A mixed customer case is assembled from available harvests, including gold oysters, beech mushrooms, and lion’s mane grown on straw and soybean hull substrate.
Mushroom Farming: Oak Pellet and Wheat Bran Substrate Blocks
Oak pellets and wheat bran are hydrated and mixed into substrate blocks for shiitake production, with attention to water distribution and consistency.
Sterile Mushroom Substrate
Sterilized oak hardwood and soy substrate blocks are unloaded from an atmospheric steam sterilizer and moved into the lab for inoculation preparation.
PeddlerCon 2021: Growing Mushrooms & Mycology Insights
Southwest Mushrooms presents fresh lion’s mane, oyster, reishi, and specialty varieties at PeddlerCon while discussing flavor, medicinal uses, origins, and farm operations.
Straw vs Oak for Mushroom Substrate
Experiments compare straw and soybean hull substrate with oak mixes across oyster and specialty mushroom blocks, reviewing yields, flushes, and production practicality.
Harvesting Shiitake Mushrooms
A large shiitake harvest is cut from dozens of blocks, then packed with pioppino, chestnut, and lion’s mane into protected distributor cases.
Mushroom Liquid Culture Syringes
Sterile liquid culture syringes are filled from colonized jars using long needles, alcohol sanitation, sterile caps, and a bacti incinerator.
80 Bags of Autoclave Sterile Grain Spawn
A full autoclave of sterilized sorghum grain bags is depressurized, unloaded in the spawn lab, wiped down, and prepared for inoculation.
Long Term Mycelium Incubation
A tour of the secondary incubation area covers long-colonizing species, shiitake browning, fresh enoki, and reishi forming conks from filter patches.
Inoculating Substrate with Mushroom Mycelium
Sterile sawdust blocks are labeled, handled in a flow bench, and inoculated with grain spawn for lion’s mane and other mushroom strains.
Autoclave Sterilization for Mushroom Spawn
A horizontal autoclave is loaded, sealed, and cycled between 15 and 20 psi to sterilize grain spawn for lab production.
The New Inoculation Lab
A new positive pressure lab handles spawn and culture production, including sterilized liquid media, jar labeling, and agar tissue transfers.
Grow Tent Mushroom Farming
A tour of Southwest Mushrooms’ grow tent covers oyster block flushes, summer strain choices, and managing production in Arizona heat.
Mushroom Final Flushes and Sterile Substrate
A grow tent near restocking is reviewed through final flush harvesting, turkey tail production, and observations on colonized sterile substrate blocks.
Mushroom Mycelium Incubation
A walkthrough of the incubation area shows oyster and lion’s mane blocks colonizing, with notes on growth timelines, strain differences, and contamination checks.
Mushroom Overgrowth and Grain Spawn Incubation
Grain spawn incubation is shown with chestnut, reishi, and oyster cultures, including grain-to-grain expansion, colonization timing, and overgrowth handling.
Sawdust Production Blocks for Mushroom Cultivation
Sawdust and soybean hull substrate is hydrated, mixed, bagged, and loaded for sterilization as production blocks are prepared for mushroom cultivation.
Massive Mushrooms in the Grow Tent
A grow tent walkthrough covers harvesting king trumpets, assessing blue oysters and chestnuts, and trimming mushrooms for weighing and market sale.
Lion's Mane Mushroom Harvest
A farm harvests first-flush lion’s mane, trims dense fruiting bodies from blocks, packs five-pound boxes, and sets aside usable trim for drying.
Dried Mushrooms
The dried mushroom storage reset covers product organization, packaged medleys, single-species offerings, powders, and basic rehydration uses for cooking.
Sawdust Spawn Mycelium Inoculation
Sawdust spawn is broken up and used to inoculate lion’s mane production blocks, expanding colonized mycelium while maintaining strong first-flush yields.
Fruiting Reishi Mushrooms
Reishi blocks are loaded into a new grow room while explaining mini kits, antler growth, conk formation, elevated CO2, and spore production.
Grow Tents for an Urban Mushroom Farm
Blue oyster blocks are deflated, folded, and prepared for fruiting while the farm discusses grow tent use in an urban mushroom operation.
Golden Enoki Mushroom Harvest
Golden enoki mushrooms are harvested and examined alongside grow room notes on CO2, lighting, stem formation, and neighboring oyster and nameko crops.
Elm Oyster Mushroom Harvest
Elm oyster mushrooms are harvested at peak quality, with preparation covering table sanitation, debris handling, glove changes, shoe covers, and spore protection.
A Mushroom Farm Laboratory
Laboratory work covers sterile agar transfers into malt-dextrose liquid cultures, with HEPA-filter technique and labeling for farm spawn production.
Growing Mushrooms in Grow Tents on an Urban Farm
An urban mushroom farm harvests pioppino and king trumpet mushrooms from grow tents, trims substrate, and packs mixed cases for customers.
Packing Gourmet Mushroom Crates for Distribution
Packing six-pound mixed crates for restaurant distribution, combining lion’s mane, oysters, pioppino, and chestnut mushrooms harvested from hardwood substrate blocks.
How We Make Mycelium Grain Spawn & Liquid Culture | Mushroom Lab Techniques
Southwest Mushrooms prepares sterilized grain spawn bags, manages moisture and cooldown, and outlines lab inoculation methods using liquid culture, agar, or grain.
How We Inoculate Mycelium in the Lab | Clean Room Mushroom Cultivation
Lab work covers grain spawn inoculation using liquid culture, agar wedges, and grain transfers, with shaking and labeling for culture expansion.
2020
Inside Our Exotic Mushroom Grow Room | Lion’s Mane, Chestnut, Pioppino & More
A grow room walkthrough presents fruiting blocks of pink and golden oysters, lion’s mane, chestnut, pioppino, and other specialty mushrooms.
Fruiting Oyster Mushrooms on Production Blocks | Complete Indoor Grow Cycle | Southwest Mushroom
Oyster mushroom production blocks are prepared for indoor fruiting, covering colonization signs, bag cutting, humidity protection, and varieties including golden, pink, blue, and Italian.
Fruiting Lion’s Mane Mushrooms | How We Grow Hericium erinaceus Indoors
Indoor lion’s mane production is shown from full colonization through grow room placement, comparing side fruiting, top fruiting, bag slicing, and harvest timing.
Fruiting Maitake Mushroom Blocks | How We Grow Grifola frondosa Indoors
Fruiting Maitake blocks indoors is shown from grain spawn to oak-based production blocks, with notes on long incubation, pin formation, and grow-room timing.
How Mycelium Becomes Mushrooms | The Urban Farm Lifecycle
Covers the mushroom production lifecycle, from culture work and liquid culture to grain spawn, substrate colonization, and fruiting at an urban farm.
How to Grow & Harvest Shiitake Mushrooms Indoors | Cultivation Tips
Indoor shiitake blocks are harvested by hand, sorted into produce boxes, and discussed alongside humidity management and supplemented oak sawdust substrate.
Fast Fruiting Mushrooms Indoors | How We Grow Top Yields
Lion’s mane blocks are shown from inoculation through colonization, then moved into the grow room and prepared for side fruiting.
How We Incubate Mycelium Blocks for Mushroom Growth | Cultivation Tour
The farm cools sterilized substrate blocks, sanitizes handling tables, and moves freshly inoculated pink oyster bags into incubation for rapid colonization.
How We Load Shiitake Mushroom Blocks Into the Fruiting Room
Shiitake blocks are unpacked, lightly struck to stimulate fruiting, and loaded upside down onto shelves in the farm’s fruiting room.
Cleaning Day At Our Indoor Mushroom Farm
Post-harvest cleanup in a shiitake grow room covers clearing debris, removing water, wiping shelves, and adjusting humidity and ventilation systems.
Sterilizing 95 Hardwood Substrate Production Blocks for Mushroom Cultivation
Hardwood substrate blocks are loaded into atmospheric steam sterilizers, cooked under PID temperature control, cooled, and prepared for mushroom culture inoculation.
Making 95 Blocks of Our Hardwood Sawdust Substrate for Mushroom Cultivation
A farm batch of 95 hardwood sawdust substrate blocks is mixed from oak pellets, soy hulls, and measured water for mushroom cultivation.
Making 93 Grain Spawn Bags
The crew prepares 93 millet grain spawn bags, weighing dry grain and adding water to target consistent moisture for sterilization.
Growing Pioppino Mushrooms and Reishi Harvest
Harvesting overgrown pioppino blocks and reishi, the farm evaluates a fast-fruiting strain on locally sourced untreated alder sawdust.
Mushroom Mycelium Tissue Culturing in Liquid and Agar Media
Cultures and spawn are inspected before agar tissue from cordyceps, oyster, and shiitake strains is transferred into liquid nutrient media.