Do you know your Mushroom Farmer?
Do you know your mushroom farmer? Or any farmer? Time to make new friends! Parasol Mycology is part of a growing network of farmers producing high quality, organically certified functional mushrooms in the United States. While China leads the world in mushroom production and ancient practices, it is simply not sustainable to source from overseas. Consuming domestically or locally grown mushrooms (really all food) is the best way to support local economies, build community, and reduce environmental impact.
Our goal is to support the development of US grown functional mushrooms so this powerful medicine becomes accessible to the average person. We hope daily mushroom rituals become a normal part of a healthy life.
Our Farm
Though relatively small, our 800 ft2 facility was purpose-built from the ground up to maximize our use of space. As a former process engineer, David paid special attention to workflow, materials handling, modularity, and ergonomic/ safety aspects.
Grow tents were chosen over more permanent chambers in order for us to be more flexible and adapt to various markets and product demands. We are able to maintain several different temperature/humidity profiles under one roof, and our equipment is dual-purposed for block grows and cordyceps. As of late 2022, we have grow/incubation space for up to 200 lbs of fresh Lion’s mane per week, around 100 Reishi blocks, and over 200 cordyceps trays in rotation at a time. We plan to use some of our Lion’s mane space to start growing Turkey Tail in 2023.
Our airflow and conditioning system was designed for a very demanding local climate. Two overpowered heat pumps provide redundancy and precise dual-zone temperature control for fruiting and incubation, and our make-up intake system provides positive pressure to the main space while filtering down to MERV 14. Outdoor dust, spore load, and smoke are not an issue. Around 12 pascals of positive pressure in the main space allows us to exhaust our tents both passively and with blowers mounted on the outside, while always maintaining negative tent pressure. Our fans never get dirty, and pests are not able to find their way into the building due to the outward flow. You’ll find no fungus gnats here!
Returning to our roots
Carissa & Dave have each been on many adventures and have had multiple careers. Prior to their marriage and family life, they got a taste for ‘traditional’ society and working in corporate systems. While they value the experience, they both knew it wasn’t for them. That life can’t sustain a human more than monetarily and they wanted more for themselves and their children.
As the world settled into pandemic life, they fled the big city of Seattle and returned to small town living in Paradise, CA where Carissa spent her childhood. The nostalgia of the old town had been burned to the ground but the the potential and resilience of the community was apparent.
They are passionate about participating in the rebuild of Paradise and use their mycology research to help restore the soil on the Ridge, participate in permaculture & building projects, and create jobs for locals.
Dave, originally from Michigan, has 9 years of experience in wildland fire leadership, a B.S. in Physics from OSU, 15 years in professional engineering roles, and two years in Mycology R&D.
Carissa grew up in Northern California, both of her parents & grandparents are from Paradise. She has over 15 years of marketing and business experience with 10 years at Microsoft. She is a community builder & networker at heart and currently volunteers as Chair of the Town of Paradise Planning Commission.
Carissa and Dave have settled into their home in Upper Paradise where they live with their son Nolan, daughter Della, a dog, cat, two chickens, a handful of fish, and a whole lot of mushrooms.
Carissa Garrard
Owner | Marketing
Dave Konyndyk
Owner | Grower & Genetics
