How to Grow Tea Tree Mushroom? Latest Cultivation Techniques and Methods Tutorial Explained in Detail

Tea tree mushroom, also known as tea bamboo mushroom, has a delicious flavor, is crisp and tender, and has a delicate fragrance without any off-odor. The mushroom body contains 18 kinds of amino acids and multiple mineral elements. Traditional Chinese medicine holds that tea tree mushroom is neutral in nature, sweet and warm, and has effects such as dispelling dampness, promoting urination, and strengthening the spleen and stomach. It is one of the delicious and rare edible fungi, and is currently the most favored mushroom dish at banquets and restaurants. Its cultivation techniques are introduced as follows:

Biological Characteristics of Tea Tree Mushroom

1. Nutrition: Tea tree mushroom is a wood-rotting fungus. Because it lacks laccase activity, its ability to utilize lignin is weak, but its protease activity is strong and its ability to utilize protein is strong. Therefore, increasing the proportion of organic nitrogen (such as wheat bran, rice bran, corn flour, cake fertilizer, etc.) in the cultivation substrate is beneficial for increasing yield.

2. Moisture: The water content of the tea tree mushroom cultivation substrate should be controlled at 64%-67%, and the mycelium grows relatively quickly. If the substrate is too dry or too wet, it is not conducive to mycelial growth. When the fruiting body forms, the relative air humidity should be reduced from 100% to 85%, which can promote robust development of the fruiting body.

3. Temperature: Tea tree mushroom grows in temperate to subtropical regions, so this fungus is relatively resistant to high temperatures and can also tolerate low temperatures. Tea tree mushroom mycelium can grow normally at 5-35°C, with the optimum temperature range being 18-28°C. The fruiting body formation temperature is 13-28°C, with the optimum being 18-24°C.

4. Air: Tea tree mushroom is an aerobic fungus and is very sensitive to carbon dioxide. Fresh air supply must be ensured during both the mycelial growth stage and the fruiting body growth stage. However, during the fruiting body growth stage, appropriately increasing the carbon dioxide concentration can promote elongation of the tea tree mushroom stipe, thereby increasing yield.

5. Light: The mycelial growth process of tea tree mushroom usually does not require light, but its fruiting body has obvious phototropism. Both primordium formation and fruiting body development require a certain amount of scattered light. Therefore, during fruiting, the cultivation room requires relatively strong scattered light (500—1000 lux), which is beneficial for primordium formation and fruiting body growth.

6. pH: The pH for tea tree mushroom mycelial growth is between 4-6.5, with the optimum pH being 5.5-6. Below pH 4 or above pH 6.5, the mycelium grows sparsely and slowly.

Cultivation Techniques for Tea Tree Mushroom

1. Selecting and breeding excellent strains: At present, there are many tea tree mushroom strains, such as Tea Tree Mushroom-1, Tea Tree Mushroom-3, and Tea Tree Mushroom-5 selected and bred by the Sanming Fungus Research Institute, and strains such as AS78 and AS982 from Jiangxi. Our region mainly promotes Tea Tree Mushroom-3 and Tea Tree Mushroom-5, which are suitable for both fresh market sales and drying. However, regardless of which strain is selected, the spawn is required to have thick, robust, dense white mycelium. It is normal for small fruiting bodies to appear on the surface of stock spawn and cultivation spawn, just like enoki mushroom. But if the mycelium is sparse, weak, and thin, does not fully colonize the substrate, has discolored spots, or produces yellow liquid, it should not be used.

2. Cultivation season: Because tea tree mushroom is relatively resistant to high temperatures and can also tolerate low temperatures, it can be cultivated year-round in our region. However, cultivation in different seasons results in different yields and quality. Therefore, to achieve high yield and high efficiency in tea tree mushroom cultivation, a suitable cultivation period must be selected. According to cultivation trials in various places, spring cultivation or autumn cultivation is suitable, especially spring cultivation, which gives higher yields. In production, fruiting is generally arranged when the spring temperature rises to 20°C, and when the autumn temperature drops to 25°C. Therefore, the suitable cultivation period in our region is: for spring cultivation, bag making from January to February, fruiting in April-May; or bag making from September to October, fruiting in November-December.

3. Substrate formulas

① Sawdust 36.5%, cottonseed hull 36.5%, wheat bran or rice bran 25%, light calcium carbonate 1%, sucrose 1%.

② Cottonseed hull 78%, wheat bran or rice bran 20%, gypsum 1%, sugar 0.5%, lime 0.5%.

4. Making mushroom bags

① Mix ingredients according to the above formulas based on the quantity required for production. Raw materials are required to be fresh, free from mold, and free from insect damage. Mix thoroughly and evenly. Cottonseed hulls can be pre-wetted in advance. The water content of the substrate should be kept at about 65%. Use low-pressure polyethylene plastic bags with specifications of 17cm×35cm×0.05cm. Each bag holds about 0.35kg of dry material, with a height of 14-15cm. Fill with appropriate tightness, and reserve an inoculation hole in the middle with a diameter of 2-2.5cm and a depth of 8-10cm. Level the substrate surface, promptly put on the neck ring and insert the cotton plug (or tie tightly with hemp rope or braided cord), then perform atmospheric sterilization. Generally, raise the temperature to 100°C within 4 hours and maintain it for 10-14 hours. Tea tree mushroom has relatively weak resistance to contaminating microorganisms, so sterilization must be thorough, and during the production process, strict precautions must be taken to prevent puncturing or abrasion of the bags to avoid contamination. To prevent bag puncturing, the “double bag” method (putting two plastic bags together) can also be used to make cultivation bags.

② After the substrate is sterilized, inoculation can be carried out only after the substrate temperature drops below 30°C. The inoculation box or inoculation room should be completely disinfected. The inoculation amount is 30-40 bags per bottle (bag). During inoculation, part of the spawn should be placed into the reserved hole in the bag, and part should remain on the substrate surface, which can accelerate colonization and mycelial coverage. After inoculation, cultivate in the dark. Tea tree mushroom mycelium recovers and colonizes slowly, and is prone to contamination by microorganisms and pests. Therefore, after inoculation, attention should be paid to keeping the cultivation room clean, dry, and ventilated, preventing the effects of high and low temperatures, and promoting uniform mycelial growth. Check frequently. If any bags contaminated by microorganisms are found, promptly move them out for disposal to prevent spread. Generally, after inoculation, the mycelium can fully colonize the bags in 30-40 days.

5. Fruiting management

① Under normal conditions, tea tree mushroom can fruit 50-60 days after inoculation. Before fruiting, primordium induction management should be carried out. During primordium induction, the bags can be placed upright or stacked in a wall arrangement. Then remove the cotton plug or cut the tying cord, straighten the bag opening, and arrange the bags to induce primordia. For upright placement, arrange about 80 bags per square meter. Allow the mycelium to transition from vegetative growth to reproductive growth. The color of the substrate surface also changes accordingly: at first there is yellow liquid, then it turns brown, and small mushroom buds appear.

② Increase the relative air humidity and maintain it at 95-98%. Spray water in the morning and evening to preserve moisture.

③ Control light intensity at 500-1000 lux and temperature within the range of 18-24°C. In this way, after opening the bags, a large number of fruiting bodies will develop in 10-15 days.

④ After fruiting, the spatial humidity must be appropriately lowered and ventilation reduced. At this time, the relative humidity of the cultivation space should be lowered to 90-95%, and the frequency and duration of ventilation should be reduced to prevent excessive oxygen from causing early cap opening, short stipes, and thin flesh. If the mushroom buds are too dense, thinning can also be carried out, leaving 6-8 per bag. With a moderate number, uniform growth, good shape, and thick stipes, otherwise the quality and yield of the mushrooms will be affected.

⑤ Harvest when the caps of the tea tree mushroom fruiting bodies begin to flatten and the annulus has not yet fallen off. Because the stipe of tea tree mushroom is relatively brittle and easily broken, when harvesting, grasp the base and pull it down, while preventing damage to young mushrooms. After harvesting, the substrate surface of the bag should be cleaned thoroughly, and the bag opening should be pinched together to let the mycelium rest and recover for 2-3 days. Then pull open the bag opening, give one heavy watering, and repeat the above management. After 5-7 days, another flush of mushrooms can grow. A total of 4-6 flushes can be harvested.

Pest and Disease Control of Tea Tree Mushroom

During the process of bag making and cultivation management, tea tree mushroom often suffers from contamination by miscellaneous microorganisms and invasion by pests and diseases. Therefore, during cultivation, pest and disease control must be strengthened.

1. Do a good job of environmental sanitation and eliminate sources of pests and diseases: Maintain environmental sanitation inside and outside the mushroom house, promptly clean up garbage, especially rotten mushrooms, mushroom roots, and discarded substrate, to prevent the growth of contaminating microorganisms or adults coming to lay eggs, eliminate sources of pests and diseases, and reduce pests and diseases.

2. Light trapping and killing: The adults of mushroom mosquitoes and mushroom flies are phototactic and can be trapped and killed with black light lamps or high-voltage electrostatic insect-killing lamps.

3. Chemical control: Spray directly on the mushroom bags with a 1500-fold dilution of 5% fipronil. The pesticide fipronil has contact, stomach-poison, and systemic translocation effects on mushroom mosquitoes and flies. If larvae are seriously damaging, spray once more after three days.