What might validate a society that has mushrooms as a staple crop?

Now, bear with me because I know very little of mycology. I just know that mushrooms taste good, and that fungi is very complex with lots of different uses.

For my fantasy story, I want a society that knows the ins and outs of mycology. They grow food from mushrooms, make their medicines, from the them, and know which ones not to eat. I have said many times, if a society or civilization had the ability to do something that would benefit them, they would do it. So the question here is, how to make mushrooms a better and more reliable food source than wheat or other common crops used in Europe during this time?

I'm open to making up a new kind of mushroom, but within reason. I'm mainly focusing on how to have mushroom growers common in in one area, or small kingdom. That means I can't have some super awesome mushroom outcompeting traditional crops everywhere.

I understand that livestock mainly eat plants, so how do I make this a minimal factor? What setting would make it reasonable to have a medieval society whose main crop is mushrooms? How can I make it more effective than other crops?

posted about 8 years ago

Xandar The Zenon‭

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