Summer cultivation of straw mushrooms is timely; the planting window must not be missed
1. Cultivation season: Straw mushrooms are a high-temperature mushroom species. The suitable temperature range for straw mushroom mycelium growth is 15-40°C, with the optimum temperature being 30-35°C. The fruiting body growth temperature is 26-34°C, with the optimum temperature being 28-30°C. Cultivation is generally carried out from June to August each year. 2. Cultivation materials: cottonseed hulls, rice straw, corncobs...
The straw mushroom is a high-temperature mushroom species suitable for cultivation in summer. Its flesh is tender, its flavor is delicious, and its nutritional value is high, containing abundant protein, carbohydrates, and vitamins. Among the many edible fungi, the straw mushroom has the simplest cultivation method, the shortest production cycle (about 20 days), the most abundant raw material sources, and the most delicious taste. Its products, whether fresh mushrooms, dried products, or canned goods, are deeply loved by consumers in domestic and international markets. The mycelium growth temperature range of the straw mushroom is 30-39°C, with the most suitable temperature being 36°C, and the relative air humidity being 80-85%; the fruiting body growth temperature range is 22-34°C, with the most suitable temperature being 30°C, the relative air humidity being 85-95%, and the temperature in the growing medium preferably being 32-38°C. 1. Building beds and erecting sheds: Choose a well-ventilated, conveniently watered, easily drained, organic-rich sandy loam soil as the cultivation site. Clear weeds, turn and loosen the soil, and spray concentrated limewater to kill soil pests. Make beds running east-west, 1 m wide, with unlimited length. Dig trenches around the beds for drainage and irrigation. On the beds, use bamboo strips to build arched sheds 0.7-0.8 m high, cover the sheds with plastic film, and press the plastic film down with soil all around.
2. Preparing the substrate: There are many growing media suitable for straw mushroom growth, and cottonseed hulls are the best growing medium. The formula is: 95% cottonseed hulls, 5% lime, with the amount of water added being 1.8 times the weight of the dry material. Before cultivation, mix the growing medium evenly according to the formula requirements and pile it up for fermentation for 5-7 days. The fermentation method is: after adding water and mixing the material evenly, pile it into a long heap 1 m wide and about 60-70 cm high, with unlimited length; a small amount can also be piled into a round heap. On both sides around the heap, use wooden sticks 3-4 cm in diameter to make slanted holes reaching the bottom of the material heap, with a hole spacing of 10 cm, to allow ventilation. Insert a thermometer into the material heap to observe the heap temperature. After 2-3 days, the heap temperature can rise above 55°C, at which point the first turning can be carried out. The turning method is to turn the inner material to the outside and the outer material to the inside, then ferment again. After 1 day, the material temperature rises again to about 60°C, and then the second turning is carried out. Generally, turning 3 times is enough to achieve the purpose of thorough fermentation.
3. Laying out the material and sowing: Transport the fermented cottonseed hulls to the bed surface and arrange them in a wavy pattern, about 30 cm wide per wave, with a wave height of 12-14 cm and a wave trough depth of 1-1.5 cm. Sowing methods can be layer sowing, hole sowing, or mixed sowing. The sowing amount on the top layer should be larger, preferably accounting for 50% of the sowing amount. Then cover with plastic film, and cover the plastic film on the small arched shed with straw curtains.
4. Management measures
(1) Pay attention to heat preservation. When the air temperature is relatively low, uncover the straw curtains around 10 a.m. on sunny days to increase temperature, and cover the straw curtains around 4 p.m. to preserve heat; do not uncover the straw curtains on rainy, windy days. When the air temperature is relatively hot, cool it down appropriately; when the temperature is high, do not uncover the straw curtains at noon, and only open them in the morning and evening. In short, note that the temperature in the material generally must not exceed 40°C, and the temperature on the material surface generally must not exceed 36°C; when the material temperature is low, try to keep it warm, and the material temperature should not be lower than 30°C.
(2) Pay attention to moisture retention. If the air is dry and the soil and growing medium are rather dry, it is best to add water at noon to make the soil moist. The water surface in the trench should be 1 cm below the bed bottom. Generally, the water temperature should not be too low, preferably 28-35°C.
(3) Pay attention to ventilation. Ventilate every day in conjunction with checking the temperature. After 3-5 days of sowing, increase the ventilation volume. Generally, uncover the four corners of the plastic film for ventilation twice, about 1 hour each time.
(4) Casing soil. After 5-7 days of sowing, the mycelium fills the bed, and at this time clean and fertile garden soil should be chosen for casing. The soil layer should be controlled at 1-1.5 cm thick. The soil moisture content should be controlled to the degree that it can be formed into a ball when squeezed by hand and scattered when released. After casing, the film must still be covered, and the film should be uncovered only after the mycelium grows onto the soil layer.
5. Fruiting management: Begin fruiting management when the mycelium forms nodules. Pay attention to temperature control and moisture retention. Generally, do not water directly; mainly moisten the soil and let the growing medium absorb water by irrigating the trench, so as to meet the needs of button mushroom development and growth; uncover the curtains to let in diffused light to facilitate the development of the mushroom bodies.
6. Timely harvesting: Harvest when the straw mushroom body has grown to the shape of an egg and has not yet broken the membrane. Harvesting too late easily causes the mushroom body to open its cap and reduces its commercial value. Freshly harvested straw mushrooms are difficult to keep fresh. In high-temperature seasons above 30°C, 4-5 hours after the mushroom buttons are harvested, the cap-opening rate can reach about 50%, so they should be handled promptly. Those for fresh sale should be brought to market as soon as possible, and those for canning should be processed promptly.