Feresh Pizarro was living and working in Adelaide when she found out her husband had bought a block of land he found on Gumtree.
The opportunity to move to the tiny town of Greenways in south-east South Australia made Feresh have a rethink.
She eventually decided on a tree change, leaving behind a high-flying career in education consultancy, and following her passion for fungi.
"I'm just obsessed … every time I read [about fungi], I discover something new … people are discovering things that are just outstanding," she said.
Off-the-grid business
Feresh started her fungi business South Spore last year with the help of a self-employment assistance program, using a series of small sheds on her property to grow fungi, with additional space to turn her produce into health products and run workshops.
She is achieving all this while staying off-grid, using local materials and having a positive carbon footprint. Getting to zero-waste is the next challenge, but one she is up for.
"It is important for me to stick to the idea that the business has to be sustainable," she said.
"Eventually we will also eliminate plastic. At the moment I am still using plastic to grow the mushroom fruit."
Her sheds were also largely set up with repurposed local materials where possible.
"We try to source all our products from farming nearby … we're growing mushrooms from straw and from wood pellets, things that are very close to here," she said.
It is important to Feresh that the produce stays local as well.
"If I'm going to be sustainable, and then I have to drive 200 kilometres to deliver something, then that sustainability kind of goes backwards," she said.
Lion's mane, turkey tail and more
South Spore is growing a range of exotic mushrooms, including lion's mane, reishi, turkey tail, shiitaki and a range of oyster mushrooms.
"I love encouraging people who say they don't like mushrooms to try different mushrooms, because often they've only tried ones from the supermarket," Feresh said.
"It is like vegetables, you would not say you don't like any vegetables.
"There are so many different types of mushrooms with different tastes, colours and textures … it would be rare that you wouldn't like any of them."
When it comes to eating mushrooms, Feresh does have some favourites.
"Lion's mane I think is my favourite because I feel like I'm eating as well as providing myself with really big health benefits," she said.
Life in the country
The family made the move to help save money on a mortgage, and change their lifestyle.
While the move was not planned, Feresh said she had adjusted to her life in the country.
"I love it here now, I didn't initially," she said.
"I really was scared to move here, I guess I was scared of feeling isolated … I've been super pleasantly surprised.
"The community has been very inclusive, very supportive, welcoming and keen to learn."
When living in the city, Feresh never found anybody who shared her love for mushrooms, but within months of moving she made connections through fungi.
"I was foraging in the middle of a forest where you wouldn't expect to see anyone, and then I see this other guy with a foraging basket and a foraging knife and gumboots," she said.
"But now it seems to be quite common in this region."
Fungi hub potential
Feresh has big hopes for the Limestone Coast to one day be renowned for fungi — as the region has many different types of naturally growing species due to its climate, dense shrub and nearby forestry industry.
"There is huge potential," Feresh said.
"I believe that we can become the hub of Australia for mushrooms, not only foraging but also education and products."
South Spore has been running mushroom foraging classes when the fungi are in season, and Feresh hopes she can help to change minds on all wild mushrooms being dangerous.
While many varieties of wild-growing fungi in Australia are edible, a few are poisonous or even deadly, health authorities say, and there's no home test to distinguish between them.
For this reason there are some varieties Feresh does not advise foraging, due to lookalike dangerous mushrooms.
"At the end of the day it is about education, you have to have the right resources," Feresh said.
"With mushrooms the problem is people don't know what they're looking at, so they're really, really scared of all of them in general.
"I think more and more people are waking up to the [health] benefits of mushrooms."
