Winter-cultivated shiitake mushroom young buds have poor adaptability; fine management prevents bud withering and death

    Shiitake mushroom young buds have poor adaptability. If management gets out of control, bud withering and death can occur. So how can young bud death be prevented?

Shiitake mushroom

    1. Control temperature to prevent freezing to death: When shiitake mushrooms enter winter, cold waves are common. When the temperature drops below 5°C and stays there for several days, young buds will freeze to death, showing soft buds. After young buds appear in winter, pay attention to weather forecasts to prevent young buds from freezing to death. When temperatures below 5°C occur, use a flue for heating.

    2. Control humidity to prevent drying to death: The winter climate is dry, with relative air humidity generally around 40%, which easily causes young buds to dry to death. Young buds that die from drying become “hard nails.” To prevent young buds from drying to death, sprinkle water on the floor of the shiitake mushroom shed or introduce water vapor into the shed to raise the relative air humidity.

    3. Control ventilation to prevent mushroom death: During the young bud stage, young buds must not be exposed to direct wind, otherwise the water on the surface of the mushroom body evaporates too quickly, causing the mushroom body to lose too much water and wither and die over time. During the young bud growth period, keep the shed film well covered. When ventilation is needed, on windless days, uncover the film briefly for ventilation and promptly cover it again to retain moisture.

    4. Control gas damage to prevent poisoning to death: When the shed is heated in winter, combustion gases can easily cause young buds to be poisoned by carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide and carbon monoxide. When heating inside the mushroom shed, route the flue through a chimney to discharge waste smoke out of the shed; ventilate the shed regularly to discharge harmful gases.

    5. Control the temperature standard to prevent scorching to death: During flower induction, if the heating is too high, an entire batch of young mushrooms is often scorched to death. The maximum temperature for young bud growth is 20°C. During flower induction, the temperature should not be raised too high, and the time should be short. At the same time, strengthen ventilation and dehumidification.

    Among the five phenomena that cause the death of shiitake mushroom young buds, some are interrelated. Therefore, in management, environmental factors such as temperature, light, humidity and air must be well regulated so that young buds grow robustly.