The Truth about the Petaluma Mushroom Farm

[petmushroom]

Before you go crying any crocodile tears over the demise of the
Petaluma Mushroom Farm, find out the truth about their long and
unlawful history. Another thread on this board, entitled Petaluma
Tragedy, bemoans their recent closing.

To begin with, MANY of the farm's neighbors were here first, so that
argument falls by the wayside. And the smell?? Neighbors variously
described it as "the smell of rotting corpses" or "worse than what can
rise from the bowels of a garbage dump". If you haven't lived next to
it, you have no clue!

And, as was pointed out in the other thread, the farm grew in size from
a small "hobby" sized facility to a huge industrial plant, replete with
industrial noise levels and commercial truck traffic, day in and day
out. And the farm was one of the biggest scofflaws Sonoma County has
ever seen.

They far exceeded the number of employees allowed in their use permit.
And, most significantly, they intentionally dumped contaminated
wastewater into nearby Marin Creek.

You are probably not aware that a commercial mushroom farm such as this
literally uses tons of pesticides and fungicides each year to grow
their crop. The importation of tons of these toxic materials into one's
neighborhood is not something the average homeowner would welcome.

So, do a little research ( http://petmushroom.org/ ) before you spout
off.

[Doug Kanter]

Post by petmushroom
You are probably not aware that a commercial mushroom farm such as this
literally uses tons of pesticides and fungicides each year to grow
their crop.

I didn't know that. What sorts of pests & diseases bother mushrooms?

[notbob]

Post by Doug Kanter
I didn't know that. What sorts of pests & diseases bother mushrooms?

I don't know, but I'd like to invite them here to attack the bumper
crop of wild mushrooms (they don't look edible) that pops up in the
middle of my lawn everytime there's a good rain or I leave the
sprinklers on too long. :\

nb

[Mr Libido Incognito]

notbob wrote on 23 Feb 2006 in rec.food.cooking

Post by notbob

Post by Doug Kanter
I didn't know that. What sorts of pests & diseases bother mushrooms?

I don't know, but I'd like to invite them here to attack the bumper
crop of wild mushrooms (they don't look edible) that pops up in the
middle of my lawn everytime there's a good rain or I leave the
sprinklers on too long. :\
nb

Dig down there'll be a old board or something buried there they are l9iving
on.

[George]

Post by Mr Libido Incognito
notbob wrote on 23 Feb 2006 in rec.food.cooking

Post by notbob

Post by Doug Kanter
I didn't know that. What sorts of pests & diseases bother mushrooms?

I don't know, but I'd like to invite them here to attack the bumper
crop of wild mushrooms (they don't look edible) that pops up in the
middle of my lawn everytime there's a good rain or I leave the
sprinklers on too long. :\
nb

Dig down there'll be a old board or something buried there they are l9iving
on.

We get those white mushrooms like you see in the store for a different
reason. We put a parking area in and did some ladscaping. This included
bringing in some topsoil. Around here the good topsoil includes organic
matter that they buy from the mushroom farms. So I was surprised to see
lots of little mushrooms that would appear after heavy rain and then
remembered the topsoil guy mentioned the "mushroom dirt". Some small
patches still appear after four years.

[maxine in ri]

On Thu, 02 Mar 2006 08:21:29 -0500, George <***@nospam.invalid>
connected the dots and wrote:

~Mr Libido Incognito wrote:
~> notbob wrote on 23 Feb 2006 in rec.food.cooking
~>
~>
~>>On 2006-02-23, Doug Kanter <***@hotmail.com> wrote:
~>>
~>>
~>>>I didn't know that. What sorts of pests & diseases bother
mushrooms?
~>>
~>>I don't know, but I'd like to invite them here to attack the bumper
~>>crop of wild mushrooms (they don't look edible) that pops up in the
~>>middle of my lawn everytime there's a good rain or I leave the
~>>sprinklers on too long. :\
~>>
~>>nb
~>>
~>
~>
~> Dig down there'll be a old board or something buried there they are
l9iving
~> on.
~>
~
~We get those white mushrooms like you see in the store for a
different
~reason. We put a parking area in and did some ladscaping. This
included
~bringing in some topsoil. Around here the good topsoil includes
organic
~matter that they buy from the mushroom farms. So I was surprised to
see
~lots of little mushrooms that would appear after heavy rain and then
~remembered the topsoil guy mentioned the "mushroom dirt". Some small
~patches still appear after four years.

Do you harvest them? Or do you spray the heck out of your lawn and
garden?

maxine in ri

[Dan Abel]

Post by maxine in ri
Do you harvest them? Or do you spray the heck out of your lawn and
garden?

The biggest living thing in the world is a mushroom. People forget that
the "mushrooms" that they see are just the fruit. The actual mushroom
grows underground.

[OmManiPadmeOmelet]

Post by notbob

Post by Doug Kanter
I didn't know that. What sorts of pests & diseases bother mushrooms?

I don't know, but I'd like to invite them here to attack the bumper
crop of wild mushrooms (they don't look edible) that pops up in the
middle of my lawn everytime there's a good rain or I leave the
sprinklers on too long. :\
nb

Why? :-)

I think wild mushrooms are cute, and they indicate a very healthy soil
condition! I'd be more worried if they did NOT appear!

[OmManiPadmeOmelet]

Post by Doug Kanter

Post by petmushroom
You are probably not aware that a commercial mushroom farm such as this
literally uses tons of pesticides and fungicides each year to grow
their crop.

I didn't know that. What sorts of pests & diseases bother mushrooms?

Phorid flies for one... ;-(

I had trouble with those when I was trying to grow Oyster mushrooms.

Stammets controls them organically by maintaining a tree frog colony in
his grow rooms. <G>

I sprayed pyrethrin (which, while not totally organic is at least less
harmful than many pesticides) onto a screen that I then covered the grow
chamber with.

A lot of different types of molds will also grow in the mushroom media
and interfere with mushroom growth. Trouble is, mushrooms are a fungus
so it's hard to use anti-fungals to prevent the problem! The best way to
handle that is with sanitary handling of sterile compost, and great care
when innoculating.

And yes, I've studied the subject. <G> Plan is to try some plug spawn
for shitake and oyster mushrooms in some log cultures. I hope it works!

[biig]

Post by OmManiPadmeOmelet

Post by Doug Kanter

Post by petmushroom
You are probably not aware that a commercial mushroom farm such as this
literally uses tons of pesticides and fungicides each year to grow
their crop.

I didn't know that. What sorts of pests & diseases bother mushrooms?

Phorid flies for one... ;-(
I had trouble with those when I was trying to grow Oyster mushrooms.
Stammets controls them organically by maintaining a tree frog colony in
his grow rooms. <G>
I sprayed pyrethrin (which, while not totally organic is at least less
harmful than many pesticides) onto a screen that I then covered the grow
chamber with.
A lot of different types of molds will also grow in the mushroom media
and interfere with mushroom growth. Trouble is, mushrooms are a fungus
so it's hard to use anti-fungals to prevent the problem! The best way to
handle that is with sanitary handling of sterile compost, and great care
when innoculating.
And yes, I've studied the subject. <G> Plan is to try some plug spawn
for shitake and oyster mushrooms in some log cultures. I hope it works!
--
Peace, Om.
"My mother never saw the irony in calling me a son-of-a-bitch." -Jack Nicholson

I briefly (10 months) worked in a mushroom plant in 1982. The beds
would get infested with mites. They used formaldehyde for keeping them
down. The floors would be washed down with this stuff. That's part of
why my employment there was brief....Sharon

[Doug Kanter]

Post by biig
I briefly (10 months) worked in a mushroom plant in 1982. The beds
would get infested with mites. They used formaldehyde for keeping them
down. The floors would be washed down with this stuff. That's part of
why my employment there was brief....Sharon

Might be interesting to try and converse with people who've worked there for
a long time.

[OmManiPadmeOmelet]

Post by biig
I briefly (10 months) worked in a mushroom plant in 1982. The beds
would get infested with mites. They used formaldehyde for keeping them
down. The floors would be washed down with this stuff. That's part of
why my employment there was brief....Sharon

Nasty stuff...

[petmushroom]

Mushrooms are grown in a sterile environment so as to eliminate other
"wild" spores, insects, etc.

The Petaluma Mushroom Farm was a heavy user of hazardous materials,
with an average of 206 pounds per month being applied during a sample
period (1/02-3/02). This includes Diazinon (158 pounds per month),
Pounce (4.35 pounds per month), Mertect (19.69 pounds per month), and
Benlate (24.6 pounds per month); an average 2479 pounds (about 1.25
tons) of regulated toxics used per year. These figures are documented
in records on file with the Sonoma County Agricultural Commissioner.

A significant amount of these chemicals have been introduced into the
surrounding environment by the mushroom farm. CA Regional Water Quality
Control Board stated in the Compliance Status Report of 7/27/00 - "We
are alarmed by the recurrent nature of the illicit discharges at the
Petaluma Mushroom Farm and the facility's apparent disregard for the
County and State permit requirements. Illicit discharges and inadequate
waste management practices have persisted at the facility.

[OmManiPadmeOmelet]

Post by petmushroom
Mushrooms are grown in a sterile environment so as to eliminate other
"wild" spores, insects, etc.
The Petaluma Mushroom Farm was a heavy user of hazardous materials,
with an average of 206 pounds per month being applied during a sample
period (1/02-3/02). This includes Diazinon (158 pounds per month),
Pounce (4.35 pounds per month), Mertect (19.69 pounds per month), and
Benlate (24.6 pounds per month); an average 2479 pounds (about 1.25
tons) of regulated toxics used per year. These figures are documented
in records on file with the Sonoma County Agricultural Commissioner.
A significant amount of these chemicals have been introduced into the
surrounding environment by the mushroom farm. CA Regional Water Quality
Control Board stated in the Compliance Status Report of 7/27/00 - "We
are alarmed by the recurrent nature of the illicit discharges at the
Petaluma Mushroom Farm and the facility's apparent disregard for the
County and State permit requirements. Illicit discharges and inadequate
waste management practices have persisted at the facility.

Damn.

I'd sure not want to EAT any of their mushrooms!!!!!!

[-L.]

Post by Doug Kanter

Post by petmushroom
You are probably not aware that a commercial mushroom farm such as this
literally uses tons of pesticides and fungicides each year to grow
their crop.

I didn't know that. What sorts of pests & diseases bother mushrooms?

Fungus gnats (the larvae live in the mycelium), bacterial infections
(wilt). I have never used a fungicide to grow fungi, though. :) You
generally grow them on media containing antibiotics. I imagine they
ammend the soil to make it acidic and also use antibiotics.
-L.
(I used to culture and research plant-pathogenic fungi.)

[Dan Abel]

Post by -L.

Post by Doug Kanter

Post by petmushroom
You are probably not aware that a commercial mushroom farm such as this
literally uses tons of pesticides and fungicides each year to grow
their crop.

I didn't know that. What sorts of pests & diseases bother mushrooms?

Fungus gnats (the larvae live in the mycelium), bacterial infections
(wilt). I have never used a fungicide to grow fungi, though. :) You
generally grow them on media containing antibiotics. I imagine they
ammend the soil to make it acidic and also use antibiotics.
-L.
(I used to culture and research plant-pathogenic fungi.)

I don't know what they use the pesticides and fungicides for.

I went on a tour of this place back when they were really tiny. Once
the beds are prepared, they fill the building with steam and sterilize
everything. Otherwise, the very fertile beds will let everything grow.
After the beds are sterilized, then the mushroom spawn is put on and
covered with sterile peat moss. Of course, that was a long time ago,
and things may have changed.

[cathyxyz]

Post by petmushroom
Before you go crying any crocodile tears over the demise of the
Petaluma Mushroom Farm, find out the truth about their long and
unlawful history. Another thread on this board, entitled Petaluma
Tragedy, bemoans their recent closing.
To begin with, MANY of the farm's neighbors were here first, so that
argument falls by the wayside. And the smell?? Neighbors variously
described it as "the smell of rotting corpses" or "worse than what can
rise from the bowels of a garbage dump". If you haven't lived next to
it, you have no clue!

Well, we have a mushroom farm about half a kilometer away from where we
live - never smelled a thing...

Cheers
Cathy(xyz)

[Steve Wertz]

On 23 Feb 2006 10:05:34 -0800, "petmushroom"

Post by petmushroom
You are probably not aware that a commercial mushroom farm such as this
literally uses tons of pesticides and fungicides each year to grow
their crop.

Wouldn't fungicides be, uhhh, counter-productive when applied to
MUSHROOM farm?!

-sw

[Dan Abel]

Post by petmushroom
Before you go crying any crocodile tears over the demise of the
Petaluma Mushroom Farm, find out the truth about their long and
unlawful history. Another thread on this board, entitled Petaluma
Tragedy, bemoans their recent closing.

The truth is, they may not have been very good neighbors.

Post by petmushroom
So, do a little research ( http://petmushroom.org/ ) before you spout
off.

The other truth, is that they grew really good mushrooms, and I will
miss them a lot. That's why I posted.