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William Swayne’s Greenhouse Innovation Launches America’s Mushroom Empire
In 1885, a simple gap under greenhouse benches changed American food forever. William Swayne, a Kennett Square florist, grew carnations but saw wasted space below.
He soon sailed to Europe, brought back mushroom spawn, and tucked it under those same benches on Marshall Street.
The experiment worked so well that Swayne built the area’s first real mushroom house with perfect growing conditions…