A Practical Guide for Suburban Farmers to Develop Edible Mushroom Production

Mr. Tian, Beiyuan Subdistrict Office, Tongzhou District, Beijing

Question: How can farmers in the suburbs of Beijing develop edible mushroom production?

Answer: Researcher Chen Wenliang, Institute of Plant Protection and Environmental Protection, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences

Farmers in the suburbs of Beijing should pay attention to several aspects when developing edible mushroom production:

■ Regarding cultivation materials, first consider using locally available materials, such as whether the area has cottonseed hulls, wood chips, corn cobs, soybean stalks, rice straw, wheat straw, waste cotton, etc. Using local materials is convenient, can reduce production costs, and can achieve better economic returns. The materials for growing edible mushrooms in the suburbs of Beijing should mainly be wood chips, corn cobs, soybean stalks, and wheat straw.

■ Technically, you must learn and master spawn production and cultivation methods to avoid losses. You can first attend edible mushroom training courses to grasp the basic knowledge, and you can also visit other mushroom farms. Start only after you have preliminary technical skills.

■ Regarding mushroom species, start with oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus), because they are easy to grow, have high yields, and offer good economic returns. After mastering oyster mushroom cultivation techniques, then develop other edible mushrooms.

■ Regarding the scale of development, start small and expand gradually to accumulate experience and avoid detours. Do not start blindly on a large scale.

■ On the issues of market and sales, do a good job of market research and decide which varieties to grow according to market demand. At present, growing oyster mushrooms, shiitake mushrooms (Lentinula edodes), enoki mushrooms (Flammulina velutipes), wood ear mushrooms (Auricularia heimuer), king oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus eryngii), chestnut mushrooms, etc. offers relatively good economic returns. When edible mushroom production is large in scale, it should be operated through wholesale, such as wholesale to the Central Grain and Oil Wholesale Market and Xinfadi Wholesale Market, etc. When the cultivation scale is small, fresh sales should mainly be made locally in the district or county.

■ After farmers have sufficient funds and mature technology, they can also consider further developing factory-based edible mushroom production.