Did you know that you can grow your own mushrooms? Yes, these tasty funghi are a satisfying addition to your homegrown produce list. They require only a little bit of maintenance and reach full growth after four to six weeks. Great for those with waning patience!
However, if you still find that you can’t wait that long, you can harness the power of the ultimate mushroom booster jab: coffee. Coffee grounds are, firstly, pasteurised by the brewing process, and therefore don’t contain contaminants to interfere with the mushroom spores. Secondly, they’re packed to the brim with nutrients which help mushrooms thrive.
Now, if you were to grow mushrooms with coffee grounds from scratch, you would have to find a whole lot of fresh ground coffee in order to achieve a good yield of mushrooms. However, you can save yourself that hassle of asking your local cafe if you can have their grounds, by getting your own kit from the Espresso Mushroom Company.
The Pearl Oyster Kitchen Garden and Hot Pinks Kitchen Garden are all ready to go – no prep needed. With each pack containing the grounds of one hundred espressos, your mushrooms will be hopped on that caffeine and raring to burst out of the pack. Simply find a light and airy spot for your box, and check back regularly to see how much your mushrooms have grown. They can double in size daily!
For Mother’s Day, I’m giving away a Pearl Oyster Kitchen Garden and Hot Pinks Kitchen Garden, as well as a gorgeous tea towel featuring illustrations of mushrooms.
For the chance to win this gift for your mum, grandma, other half or best mum friend, simply fill out the form below!
Terms & Conditions: This competition will close on Monday 25th March 2019 at 10am. If the chosen winner does not respond to our communication within 24 hours, the prize will be passed on to the next winner. This is a UK-only competition. No cash alternative.

Michael has been involved with gardening and plants since he was just five years old. He is a self-professed Plant Geek, and was listed in the Sunday Times top 20 most influential people in the gardening world, thanks to his plant hunter role at Thompson & Morgan.
Michael was responsible for new plant introductions such as the Egg and Chips plant and the FuchsiaBerry and keeps busy travelling the world in search of new plants as well as lecturing worldwide, including stints in Japan. He is very active on social media – so why not give him a follow at @mr_plantgeek or Facebook – and writes a plant-focused Substack called Grow This, Not That.