Fighting Sickness with Mushrooms at Madura Farms

Vivian and Daniel Madura are farmers, and they grow the fruits and vegetables that most other farmers do. But they also grow several varieties of mushrooms.

And at the recommendation of Rich Focht at , Madura Farms of Goshen joined the Nyack Farmers' Market this season.

"Everyone else grows the same thing—we wanted to bring something different," Vivian Madura explained. "People are very intelligent in Nyack about mushrooms. They know the different types for cooking and for medicinal uses. Other places, not as much."

This may be their first year in Nyack, but it certainly isn't their first year at a farmers' market. Several markets around Westchester and New York City have had the company of Madura Farms for a decade-and-a-half. In Nyack, the Maduras stick with mushrooms and sprouts, but at other markets they have all types of produce for sale.

"The reception in Nyack has been pretty phenominal," Madura added. "Maitake [mushrooms] are the most popular here. Reishi is getting popular for medical uses."

Maitake helps in the treatment of cancer, HIV, high blood pressure, and other illnesses—all you have to do is add them to your meal. Reishi has been used to normalize blood pressure, relieve stress, fight allergies and even prevent physical aging. Reishi mushrooms aren't cooked as a meal, but used more like medicine.

Vivian has been a farmer for about 10 years now, and worked as a music teacher for Orange County Community College until just two years ago. For her husband, things aren't quite as new: Daniel grew up as a fourth generation Polish farmer and started growing mushrooms in 1977. He stopped for a while, working as everything from a machinery mechanic to paralegal to nuclear reactor overseer. But he ended up back on a farm full-time 15 years ago.

Occasionally, Madura Farms sells their mushrooms to restaurants, but farmers' markets are their chief venue. Check them out on Thursday between 8 a.m. and 2 p.m. in the Riverspace Parking lot.