Shiitake mushroom deformities affect appearance quality, how can they be prevented?

    During the growth process of shiitake mushroom fruiting bodies, "candle mushrooms" (with a stem but no cap), "pinecone mushrooms", and "lychee mushrooms" (with a cap cluster but no stem or not opening the cap) often appear; these are all deformed shiitake mushrooms and belong to physiological diseases. How to prevent them, there are the following points: 

Shiitake mushroom deformities

    1. Correct strain introduction: Before cultivation, first clarify the characteristics of the strain, select suitable shiitake mushroom varieties according to local conditions, arrange a suitable inoculation season, and calculate the scheduled inoculation time. 

    2. Familiarize yourself with the characteristics: If the bag is removed too early, the mycelium physiology has not reached maturity, and there will be more abnormal mushrooms. The signs of physiological maturity of the mycelium are "one mycelial age, three standards." "One mycelial age" means about 60 days from the date of inoculation; the "three standards" are that the bubble-like mycelium of the nodular protrusions in the bag accounts for 2/3 of the entire bag surface, brown appears locally, and when the bag is held in the hand, it has a soft and elastic feel. 

    3. Control temperature well: During the color-changing period, pay attention to temperature changes. For the first 3 days, when the temperature is within 25°C, there is no need to uncover the film covering the mushroom bed. Under normal circumstances, color changing ends in 12 days, and the first flush of mushrooms appears after 3 days. Master the principle of temperature variation and prevent insufficient stimulation by temperature difference: the correct method of temperature variation: cover the mushroom bed with plastic film during the day, and uncover it for 1 hour after 12 o'clock at night, so that the day-night temperature difference is above 10°C. 

    4. Manage humidity well: soak in water promptly and in appropriate amounts, and prevent water moisture from being too early or too low: when the water content of the fungus logs is below 40%, fruiting is difficult and there are many small mushrooms. Generally, soaking is carried out when the weight of the fungus logs is 30% less than the original. 

    5. Skillfully stimulate mushrooms: The method of stimulating mushrooms should be appropriate, and prevent being too dry or too wet. After each flush of mushrooms is harvested, the film must be uncovered for ventilation for 6-7 days, so that the mycelium absorbs sufficient oxygen to restore growth ability, and then switch to spraying water to maintain moisture, alternating dry and wet, to urge the next flush of mushroom buds. 

    6. Harvest at the right time: Harvest shiitake mushrooms when the cap has curled edges and the stem is moderate, once a day. At the peak production period in spring, sometimes it is necessary to harvest 2 times a day.