Photo by Jay Paul
History: A former real estate broker in Oregon, Rappahannock River Mushrooms founder Dave Boso was forced to consider a new career following a series of health setbacks. Having grown up in an agricultural area of northwest Ohio, he was drawn to farming, and fortuitously, a client of his was in the midst of selling a growing operation. Originally farming out west, Boso moved to Richmond in 2020 and began selling mushrooms locally in November.
Specialties: Rappahannock River Mushrooms specializes in tree mushrooms, including varieties such as oyster mushrooms, lion’s mane, chestnut, maitake, shiitake and enoki.
Production: Starting with liquid mushrooms, Boso inoculates whole oats to begin the process. Once the oats are fully inoculated, they are added to a “masters mix” that features oak sawdust and soy bean hull sawdust, where they will continue to colonize for another two weeks. After, the mushrooms are transferred to a grow room for an additional week to 10 days before harvesting. The entire chemical-free grow process takes 35 to 45 days.
Buy: Find Rappahannock River Mushrooms at the Tappahannock Farmers Market, Carytown Farmers Market, Birdhouse Online Farmers Market and RVAg Marketplace.
