Georgia Magazine - July 2021 - 17

Learn more about mushrooms from
the North American Mycological
Association at namyco.org and
the Georgia Mushroom Club at
gamushroomclub.org.
The mushroom is kind of like the 'tip of the iceberg.' "
He adds another fun fact: Fungi are not plants, even though
they seem vegetable-like. But they are not animals,
either, even though they consume other things to stay alive.
Fungi are their own separate kingdom.
Moreover, the many shapes, sizes and colors of mushrooms
do not cast seeds to propagate. They release tiny spores.
Farming mushrooms is much different from farming corn,
tomatoes or watermelons. Jacques' farm has two large shipping
containers with temperature, humidity and light controls; a
storage shed; a walk-in cooler; and thousands of mushrooms in
different stages of development. He sells his gourmet mushrooms
directly to local chefs and at farmers markets from
Georgia's Golden Isles to Hilton Head, S.C. He also sells mushroom-growing
kits online.
" I'm as busy and tired as other types of farmers, " he says.
" It never ends. There's a lot to keeping up with production;
mushrooms grow really fast. But also, I'm on the road a lot,
whether I am traveling to farmers markets or driving around foraging
for particular varieties or picking up hardwood sawdust or
other materials I need to grow the mushrooms. "
Jacques introduces Georgians to the weird, wonderful
world of mushrooms in a variety of ways. He's a familiar face
at the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge's Pioneer Day in
Folkston (usually held in November), at Scouting meetings and
in school classrooms.
" Sometimes when I see rain in the forecast, I'll blast
out a message saying, 'When it rains, it spores,' " he says
with a laugh. " Then I invite guests to join me the following
day at a specific location to look for different mushroom
varieties. Sometimes, I have as many as 40 people
show up to learn how to identify mushrooms. "
Mushroom mania
Rachel Braden of Plainville in Gordon County says
mushroom farming feels like an art form to her.
" You care for them from the time that they are microscopic
mycelium, and they grow into amazing, beautiful mushrooms, "
she says.
Braden-who is a U.S. Navy veteran, a wife to husband
Dalton and a mother to 5-year-old Jaxson-launched Bella Vita
Mushrooms in 2017. ( " Bella Vita " is Italian for " the beautiful
life. " )
" I read up on it, took a few courses and charged everything
to my credit cards, " she says. " That was four years ago, and I've
learned so much since then. "
Today, the entrepreneur is a bona fide " shroomer. " She
knows the difference between safe and poisonous varieties, and
she has received certification from the Food and Drug Administration
to sell permitted wild mushrooms to the public.
She says that much of the first few years as a mushroom
farmer was trial and error.
" I failed many times and was on the verge of giving up
Rachel Braden holds some of the blue
oyster mushrooms produced at Bella
Vita Mushrooms in Plainville.
more times than I can recall, " she says. " I think most people
don't realize that mushroom farming is quite expensive to get
into, and it's a lot of work. "
But she kept pushing. She reached out to local chefs and
www.georgiamagazine.org 17
U
E
S
AMBER LANIER NAGLE
S
A
R
A
H
J
A
C
Q
http://www.namyco.org http://www.gamushroomclub.org http://www.georgiamagazine.org
Georgia Magazine - July 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Georgia Magazine - July 2021
