What exactly causes the death of young straw mushroom (Volvariella volvacea) fruiting bodies?
1. The primary condition for early cultivation of straw mushrooms is to have a mushroom house with a certain degree of heat preservation and moisture retention. At present, mushroom houses generally take three forms: those built with vegetable pipe sheds, those built with foam boards, and those converted from brick-and-tile structures. 2. For early cultivation of straw mushrooms, low-temperature strains should be selected: choose low-temperature strains and keep the mushroom house temperature at around 26°C...
During straw mushroom production, patches of small mushrooms can often be seen wilting and dying, causing serious losses to straw mushroom yields. There are many reasons for the death of young mushrooms, mainly the following.1. The substrate is too acidic. Straw mushrooms prefer an alkaline environment. When the pH is less than 6, although mushrooms can form, they are difficult to grow larger. An acidic environment is more suitable for the growth of contaminants such as green mold and yellow mold, which compete for nutrients and cause the death of straw mushrooms. Therefore, when preparing the substrate, appropriately increase the pH value within the substrate. After harvesting the first flush, spray 1% limewater or 5% wood ash water to keep the pH within the substrate at around pH 8.
2. Substrate temperature is too low or fluctuates sharply. Straw mushroom growth is very sensitive to temperature. Generally, when the substrate temperature is below 28°C, straw mushroom growth is affected and may even die. If the temperature changes too much, such as during a cold wave or typhoon, the air temperature will drop sharply, causing the death of young mushrooms; in severe cases, even large mushrooms will die.
3. Improper watering. Straw mushrooms have certain requirements for water temperature, generally requiring the water temperature to be about the same as room temperature. If deep well water at around 20°C is sprayed in hot summer, it will cause massive death of young mushrooms. Therefore, watering should be done in the morning and evening, and the water temperature should preferably be around 30°C.
According to the different stages of straw mushroom fruiting body growth and development, correctly master the watering method. If the fruiting bodies are too small, overly heavy watering will cause the death of young mushrooms. During the pinhead stage and small button stage of the fruiting bodies, spraying on the substrate surface must be stopped. If the substrate surface is relatively dry, you can only spray mist in the aisles of the cultivation room and pour water on the floor to increase the relative humidity of the air.
4. Damage during harvesting. Straw mushroom mycelium is relatively sparse and extremely prone to damage. If the picking motion is too large, it will disturb the surrounding substrate, causing mycelial breakage. When the mycelium around young mushrooms breaks, water and nutrients cannot be supplied. Therefore, when harvesting, the motion should be as gentle as possible. When picking straw mushrooms, hold the base of the straw mushroom's growth with one hand to protect the other young mushrooms, and with the other hand twist and pick off the mature mushroom. If there are densely clustered mushrooms, they can be picked together to avoid causing the death of many immature mushrooms due to the disturbance of an individual mushroom.