Detailed Explanation of New Technology for Indoor Shelf-Style Sterilized Substrate Cultivation of Tricholoma lobayense

Tricholoma lobayense is a rare mushroom species newly developed in recent years. It fruits at relatively high temperatures and is suitable for cultivation from late spring to mid-autumn. It solves the problems of variety matching for year-round cultivation in mushroom houses and the limited area and few varieties for edible mushroom cultivation in summer that cannot meet market demand, and it has broad development prospects. At present, cultivation methods and management practices vary from place to place, so fruiting and yields are also very unstable, and mushroom death is especially likely to occur at the primordium stage. Because the indoor temperature difference between day and night is small (cultivation and fruiting are even better in houses with earthen walls), mushroom death caused by sudden high-temperature weather outdoors will not occur; humidity control is easy, and after spraying water on the floor and surrounding areas, the rising water vapor can form a good fruiting environment, creating favorable conditions for primordium formation and fruiting body growth, and the mushroom shape is good. The indoor shelf-style sterilized substrate cultivation technology for Tricholoma lobayense is introduced as follows:

I. Season Selection

Tricholoma lobayense is a high-temperature edible mushroom. Its mycelium can grow normally at 20-35°C, with the optimum temperature range of 25-30°C; fruiting bodies form at 15-35°C, with 22-30°C being best. According to the temperature requirements for mycelial growth and fruiting body development of Tricholoma lobayense, the cultivation season can be reasonably arranged in each locality based on local temperatures. Generally, when the local air temperature rises above 20%, 40-50 days before that is chosen as the bag-making production season. For spring cultivation, planting is generally chosen from February to April, with fruiting from May to July; for autumn cultivation, planting from July to August and fruiting from September to October are preferable.

II. Substrate Formula and Cultivation Bag Preparation

1. Substrate formulas:

① Conventional sawdust sterilized substrate culture medium. Dry sawdust 78%, wheat bran 20%, brown sugar 1%, calcium carbonate 1%, substrate-to-water ratio 1:1.1-1.2.

② Corncob 50%, cottonseed hull 46%, gypsum powder 1%, lime 2%, superphosphate 1%.

③ Rice straw 76%, cottonseed hull 20%, lime 2%, gypsum 1%, superphosphate 1%. Local materials can be used according to local resource conditions.

2. Cultivation bag preparation: Weigh out sufficient raw and auxiliary materials according to the cultivation substrate formula, mix the substrate evenly and fill bags, then sterilize and inoculate in the same way as conventional bag substrate cultivation. Move the inoculated culture bags into a ventilated culture room for cultivation, arranging the bags sparsely. During the culture period, ventilate and exchange air frequently, and keep the temperature below 32°C. When the air temperature is too high, pay attention to cooling and ventilation; when the temperature is too low, carry out appropriate heating and aeration. Culturing at 25-32°C for 30-40 days allows the mycelium to fully colonize the bags. Pay attention to observing whether the bags are contaminated, and deal with contaminants promptly when found.

III. Cultivation Methods

1. Cultivation mode: Tricholoma lobayense can be cultivated both indoors and outdoors. Indoor cultivation includes shelf-style cultivation, small arch-shed bed cultivation, bag cultivation and basket cultivation, etc. An indoor shelf cultivation room should be convenient for moisture retention, heat preservation, ventilation and light transmission. The bed frame specifications are preferably 1 m wide, 2.5-4 m long, 0.6 m per tier, and 0.4 m from the bottom tier to the ground. Leave walkways around the bed frames. According to the above requirements, each locality can renovate and use simple rooms according to actual conditions, or build mushroom houses suited to local conditions. It should be noted that when the cultivation room is too large, due to high summer temperatures, indoor heat preservation is relatively difficult. Several bed frames can be wrapped with plastic film to form several relatively independent small spaces, so as to solve the problem of excessively rapid changes in relative air humidity and thereby maintain a relatively stable temperature. This is the key to successful cultivation of Tricholoma lobayense.

2. Bag removal and soil casing: Use the fully de-bagged, soil-cased, upright burial cultivation method. The specific procedure is as follows: in a sterilized and disinfected room, first lay a layer of shade net (woven bags are also acceptable) at the bottom of the bed, then completely remove the outer plastic bags from the fully colonized cultivation bags and place them upright on the bed. When placing them, leave a gap of 1-1.5 cm in front of and behind each fungus log, and fill the middle with soil and compact it. Note that fine soil should not be laid at the bottom of the bed; otherwise some fruiting bodies will grow from the bottom of the bed, affecting the commercial quality and yield of Tricholoma lobayense. After bag removal, cover the bed surface with soil. Common casing materials include river mud, peat soil, field soil, etc. The casing material should be adjusted for moisture 2-3 days before being placed on the bed, spraying water 4-6 times per day until it can be pinched flat by hand without breaking, does not stick to the hand, and has no white core. The casing thickness is 2.5-3.5 cm.

3. Management before fruiting: Under normal temperature and humidity conditions, the mycelium can resume growth within 24 hours, and after about 3 days the mycelium begins to climb onto the soil. Generally, 12-15 days after casing, white mycelium climbs onto the soil surface. At this stage, air humidity should be controlled at 85%-90%, and water can be sprayed on the floor to increase humidity. When the mycelium climbs onto the soil surface and is evenly distributed on the soil surface, strengthen ventilation and air exchange or spray water to promote the mycelium to lie down, preventing aerial mycelium from growing excessively and forming a mycelial mat that affects fruiting. After ventilation and air exchange or water spraying, the mycelium changes from the vegetative growth stage to the reproductive growth stage, and mycelial strands twist together to form primordia and produce mushroom buds.

4. Management after fruiting: After primordia appear, maintain relative air humidity above 90% and strengthen ventilation, while carrying out differentiated management according to the different stages of fruiting body growth and development. The fruiting body development process can be divided into the primordium stage, young mushroom stage, elongation stage and mature stage. The primordium stage is the key period for transformation into young mushrooms. Death is likely to occur at this stage, causing reduced yield, so the environmental humidity must be kept relatively stable, adhering to the principle of "preservation first, supplementation second." Generally no water is sprayed; in dry weather, water can be sprayed on the floor and misted into the air at the same time. Never spray water onto the mushroom bodies. When the fruiting bodies grow to 2-3 cm high and enter the elongation stage, their adaptability to the environmental conditions begins to increase, and water can be sprayed 1-2 times per day. When spraying, use a sprayer with small droplets and spray upward or sideways. At the same time, increase ventilation. When the fruiting bodies enter the mature stage, spray less water and maintain relative humidity at 85%-95%.

5. Harvesting: From primordium formation to fruiting body maturity, Tricholoma lobayense generally requires 12-15 days. When the stipe height of the fruiting body reaches about 15 cm and the cap is not yet fully flat, harvest in time. When harvesting, hold the base of the stipe and pull up the whole cluster. If needed, use a clean blade to cut off the mushrooms to be harvested and keep the other small mushrooms. The harvested fruiting bodies can be sold fresh in small packages or dried for processing. After the first flush is harvested, clean the bed surface, remove residues and aged mycelium, add soil and level the substrate surface, then adjust temperature, humidity, ventilation and other environmental conditions and move into the management stage for the second flush. Generally, 2-3 flushes can be harvested.