What are the artificial cultivation techniques for the tea tree mushroom?

The tea tree mushroom, namely Agrocybe cylindracea (columnar Agrocybe), is an edible and medicinal fungus and one of the ten rare mushroom species currently available for development, mainly distributed in the northern temperate and subtropical regions; its main production areas in China are Gutian County in Fujian and Guangchang County in Jiangxi, and it is also widely cultivated in places such as Hunan, Hubei and Zhejiang. The tea tree mushroom has a pure, fragrant and delicious taste, with a tender cap and a crisp, refreshing stem, and it is also very rich in nutritional value, containing many amino acids and proteins essential to the human body, as well as abundant vitamins and minerals; it has the effects of clearing heat and detoxifying, calming the liver and brightening the eyes, and strengthening the spleen and promoting diuresis, is very beneficial to the human body, and is a very healthy food.

Under natural conditions, the tea tree mushroom generally grows on and around the decayed roots of trees in small-tree camellia (oil tea) forests, mainly growing at the turn of spring and summer and around the Mid-Autumn Festival; because the wood of the oil tea tree is relatively hard and decays slowly, the growth cycle of the tea tree mushroom mycelium is very long. So how should we artificially cultivate the tea tree mushroom?

How to artificially cultivate the tea tree mushroom

1. Temperature

The tea tree mushroom is a medium-temperature edible fungus; the most suitable growth temperature for the mycelium is between 23°C and 28°C, and if the temperature is higher than 34°C it will stop growing. The differentiation of the fruiting body primordia requires a temperature between 12°C and 26°C, with the most suitable temperature being 18°C to 24°C; if the temperature is too low or too high, it will delay the differentiation of the primordia. At lower temperatures, the fruiting body grows more slowly but the tissue is firm and the quality is better; at higher temperatures, it is more likely to open its cap and produce long-stemmed, thin-capped mushrooms. The tea tree mushroom has a relatively wide fruiting temperature range and a long growth period; in subtropical regions, it is only necessary to pay attention to the issue of winter heating to cultivate it year-round, while other climate zones should be determined according to the situation.

2. Humidity

The water content of the culture medium for cultivating the tea tree mushroom needs to be controlled between 60 percent and 65 percent. There is a convenient way to judge this——grab a handful of the culture medium and squeeze it hard; if it feels relatively moist between the fingers, with a small amount of water but not dripping down, and when the hand is released the culture medium forms a clump that breaks apart after falling to the ground, then it is a culture medium that meets the standard. However, different types and different thicknesses of wood chips will have some differences, so this technique should not be applied indiscriminately and must be used flexibly.

3. Air

The tea tree mushroom is an aerobic fungus; in an environment with poor ventilation and a relatively high concentration of carbon dioxide, the mycelium will grow slowly, and the mushroom cap will be small and open too early, resulting in deformed mushrooms.

4. Light

The tea tree mushroom is a fungus that requires light; a suitable growing environment needs appropriate diffused light, and in particular the fruiting body is phototropic and will grow toward the light. Under lightless conditions, the differentiation of the fruiting body is not easy, but strong light exposure should also be avoided.

The above is how the Tuliu.com editor shows everyone how to artificially cultivate the tea tree mushroom; we hope it is helpful to everyone.