A Detailed Guide to Key Techniques and Management Methods for Growing Button Mushrooms
To grow button mushrooms, you first need to build a greenhouse, disinfect the greenhouse, then compost and spread the material on the bed, with a material thickness of about 20 cm. Then, evenly scatter the spawn over the surface of the material, and cover it with a 3-4 cm thick layer of growing material, patting it down gently. Finally, do a good job of ventilation, watering, and temperature control.
1. Building the greenhouse and spreading the material
Build a relatively good greenhouse, then disinfect the greenhouse to reduce the occurrence of pests and diseases. After that, when composting and spreading the material on the bed, it is required to be loose and level, with the four sides perpendicular and neat against the bed edges, and a material thickness of about 20 cm.
2. Selecting spawn and inoculating
Choose spawn with white, dense, uniform mycelium, good clumping, no contaminating fungi, and no “exuding” yellow water. Evenly scatter the spawn over the surface of the material. After inoculation, immediately cover it with a 3-4 cm thick layer of growing material, level the surface of the material, and pat it down gently.
3. Daily management
1. Ventilation: In the early stage of mycelial growth, the amount of mycelial growth is low, so ventilation is generally not needed; when the mycelium has consumed more than 5 cm of material, ventilate 2-3 times a day; after the mycelium has grown to half of the material layer, in calm or breezy weather, ventilate throughout the night.
2. Water spraying: To prevent ventilation from causing a large loss of water from the growing material, spray water on the ground to increase the air humidity in the greenhouse, keeping the relative air humidity in the greenhouse at 75%-80% at all times, so as to reduce water evaporation from the bed surface.
3. Temperature: The suitable temperature for spawn culture is 18℃-20℃, with 18℃ being the most suitable; the temperature range for mycelial growth is 5℃-23℃; below 5℃ growth stops, and above 23℃ it is prone to dehydration and death. Prevent the adverse effects on the mycelium caused by sudden climate changes, especially sustained high temperatures, and promptly take cooling measures such as ventilation and water spraying to keep the temperature in the greenhouse within the suitable range for mycelial growth.