Mushrooms

beautiful food from rot & decay

We specialize in culinary fungi. Growing mushrooms is a low-input, site-specific way to embrace western Loudoun County's moist, temperate climate that allows for cultivation of mushrooms throughout the majority of the year.

Largely focusing on shiitake varieties, we produce mushrooms that are grown on sustainably harvested Virginia hardwood logs in the open air, rather than in climate- and temperature-controlled growhouses, giving the mushrooms a seasonality and rich flavor. We supply several area restaurants with their mushrooms, as well as the Lovettsville Co-op Seasonal Market and individuals.

Fresh mushrooms are available seasonally, typically on a weekly basis from April through October. Dehydrated shiitakes are available year-round for purchase.

Get on the list

Fresh shiitakes are available throughout the growing season (typically April through October) via various outlets to western Loudoun locals, from farm markets to porch pickup. Sign up for our mailing list and/or follow us on Instagram to get updates on where to grab ‘shrooms.

01

source logs

Shiitakes can only be grown on freshly cut hardwood, generally oak. We work with foresters and landowners to sustainably harvest oak bolts that would have been taken down anyway. Quartzwood has pioneered use of unusual types of oak for shiitake cultivation, including varieties such as sawtooth oak which have naturalized a bit too readily in Virginia.

02

inoculate

Each log is drilled with holes and inoculated with shiitake mushroom spawn, which is contained in a sawdust medium. Once each hole is filled with spawn, they are covered in food grade wax to keep the spawn in and to contain moisture while the spawn populates the log.

03

Spawn run

Over the next 12-18 months, the shiitake mycelium will slowly colonize the oak log. During this period, no fruit (the edible mushroom we’re familiar with) will be produced, but rather the log waits quietly until the spawn has sufficiently established itself within the wood and begins to break it down.

04

fruit & Harvest

The logs will fruit naturally after a soaking rain, but in order to have a consistent harvest throughout the season, we “force fruit” the logs by soaking a group of them overnight and then allowing them to fruit over the course of the next week. The logs must rest in between force fruiting, so we cycle groups of our hundreds of logs through on a 4-6 week cycle.