Informations directionnelles

Remonter la rue des carrières sur une centaine de mètres puis emprunter le chemin sur la gauche. Remonter le sentier pendant environ 300 mètres puis prendre à droite et encore à droite (chemin de l’épinette). A l’intersection avec la rue Maurice Dubois prendre à gauche, puis de suite à droite dans la rue d’adhémar. Continuer tout droit, passer à côté de l’église, jusqu’à l’ancien prieuré, lieu de tournage.

The Mushroom Farm
A declining traditional activity in Ile-de-France

 

 

From limestone extraction...

This old limestone quarry operated up until the end of the First World War. Mushroom farming began here thanks to Mr Dondaine and was taken up by Mr Zinetti from 1937 onwards. In the nineteenth century, most of the underground caves were used to grow cultivated mushrooms. This practice spread rapidly in the Paris suburbs and then into provincial areas, particularly Val de Loire. Strict standards apply to the numerous production stages, which include fermentation, pasteurisation and sowing. For this mushroom farm and, indeed, for all those in the Paris region, the compost-related stages are the responsibility of a cooperative in the Oise, which delivers the compost bins every week.

 

 

...to mushroom farming

Harvesting lasts for four weeks. It is done daily by hand, requiring dexterity and knowledge. The mushrooms are harvested in batches, resulting in a succession of harvests and dormancy periods. Four batches can be grown in a single bin. All of the mushrooms grown here – white button, cremini, oyster and shiitake – are sold locally. This mushroom farm was bought over in 2016 by Mr Moioli, who previously operated out of a cellar in Montesson. Keeping mushroom-growing alive in Ile-de-France is a real challenge. In the 1960s there were over a hundred producers but today only nine remain, five of whom practise traditional cultivation in cellars.