Relationship between nutrient ratios and yield: how to mix the nutrient substrate for white beech mushroom

    The white beech mushroom (Pleurotus nebrodensis) is a newly developed emerging mushroom type, and there are many problems in its cultivation technology, especially the yield, which has long been unable to be raised. Based on the cultivation practice of white beech mushroom in recent years, it has been found that the nutrient ratio of the substrate plays a crucial role in the yield of white beech mushroom.

White beech mushroom

    The nutrients in the substrate should be mainly organic nutrients, supplemented by inorganic nutrients, which helps enhance the stamina of white beech mushroom after fruiting. Organic nutrients are mainly bran, cornmeal, rice bran, etc., generally accounting for 20%-30%, and the amount should not be too large. If the organic nutrient content is too large, it will greatly increase the contamination rate and also affect the air permeability of the substrate, causing slow mycelial growth and delayed fruiting. Inorganic nutrients are generally monopotassium phosphate, magnesium sulfate, etc., generally accounting for 0.2%-0.5%. Too much inorganic nutrients will affect the water absorption capacity of the mycelium.

    It should be emphasized that, to increase the yield of white beech mushroom, in addition to increasing the nutrient content of the substrate, it is also necessary to ensure that the substrate has a strong water absorption capacity. Currently, conventional cottonseed hulls generally have short cotton lint, and cottonseed hulls with short cotton lint have weak water absorption capacity. When using this raw material to cultivate white beech mushroom, during the fruiting period, the fruiting bodies cannot obtain sufficient water, so the marketability and specifications of the fruiting bodies are difficult to guarantee, let alone high yield. For this situation, the substrate can be appropriately adjusted by adding 30%-50% of strongly water-absorbing raw materials such as cotton linters and corncobs to the cottonseed hulls. This not only enhances the water absorption capacity of the substrate but also saves costs, achieving two goals at once. For cultivating white beech mushroom, the suitable water content of the substrate should be 60%-65%. Specifically, before substrate fermentation, the material-to-water ratio can be controlled at 1:1.5—1:1.6, and before inoculation, the material-to-water ratio can be controlled at about 1:1.3.

    Practice has proved that adding a certain amount of lime to the substrate can promote the rapid growth of white beech mushroom mycelium, and the amount of lime added should be controlled at 2%-5%. In this way, after the substrate fermentation is completed, the pH value can generally be maintained at 8-9. It is also possible not to add lime, but the mycelial growth will become slower, which has a relatively large impact on the reasonable arrangement of the fruiting season.

    In short, the reasonable ratio of the substrate is very flexible and should be scientifically adjusted according to local resources, so as to raise the yield and marketability of white beech mushroom to a satisfactory level as much as possible.