Several things pulled me towards the allure of mycelium and mushrooms! It's not your typical hobby and I'm not your typical person 🤪

There were many things that got me into growing them:

1 - I love going foraging for wild food, and of course mushrooms. This can't be done all year round - so growing them at home allowed me to get my "fix".
2 - Mushrooms are incredibly healthy, and are known as a bit of a superfood (yes that label is overused but I think fungi deserve all the praise they get).
3 - For someone looking to transition away from eating meat, mushrooms make a great protein-packed alternative.
4 - It's a different and unique hobby! Lots of people like growing fruit and vegetables (myself included) - so why not mushrooms too?
5 - It can be undertaken by all kinds of people, there isn't a really high barrier to entry. You can grow on a small hobby scale, or can go very professional and get all the gear - there are lots of opportunities!
6 - I like to know where my food comes from, and what goes into it.
7 - Round where I live there isn't a big variety of mushrooms available to buy in the supermarket - if you're able to grow them, you have a huge range of species to choose from!
8 - They can be grown in a very sustainable and eco-friendly manner; you can grow them on straw or used paper/sawdust. The mushroom compost can later be used on the garden. There is a nice little closed-loop system in that.
9 - I love watching them grow, and just the excitement of it all!

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Me with a pair of Parasol mushrooms - note, I didn't grow these (I wish I could!)