How to control rodent damage when growing edible fungi

Rodents are a major enemy in edible fungus production. They not only cause mechanical damage to fungus bags, but also indirectly cause diseases and pest infestations, leading to the occurrence and spread of various infectious and parasitic diseases and harming human health. For this reason, rodent control in edible fungus production should adhere to the plant protection policy of giving priority to prevention and applying integrated control, and in line with the principles of being safe, economical and effective, always keep every aspect of rodent control in edible fungus production tightly in mind, and carry rodent prevention and control through the entire process of integrated edible fungus management.

1. Rodent prevention measures

Edible fungus production mainly has 2 modes: indoor cultivation and outdoor mushroom shed cultivation. According to the characteristics of the production site, the following methods can be used to prevent rodent damage.

① Indoor rodent prevention For indoor edible fungus cultivation, rodent-proof facilities must be considered. For indoor pits, the surrounding walls and the floor should be poured with cement. If conditions permit, install iron window screens on mushroom house doors, ventilation windows, etc.; or spray kerosene, gasoline, etc. around the mushroom house, which both prevents rodent damage and prevents Neurospora infection.

② Rodent prevention in outdoor mushroom sheds Dig ditches around the outdoor mushroom shed (30-40 cm wide, 40-90 cm deep). Drain water on rainy days and fill with water on sunny days, which can prevent rodents from entering the mushroom shed and causing damage.

2. Rodent eradication measures

Rodent eradication in edible fungus production should be based on physical rodent control, with chemical prevention and control as the focus, and farmland and edible fungus control carried out in step. According to the specific conditions of facility-based edible fungus production, different rodent eradication measures should be adopted to ensure the quality and safety of edible fungus products, enable mushroom farmers to obtain greater economic benefits, and achieve harmony between humans and nature.

① Manual trapping In the mushroom house, use various trapping devices such as mousetraps or mouse cages to catch and kill rodents. Around the mushroom house, methods such as digging holes and pouring water into the holes can be used to catch and kill them.

② Electric cat trapping Domestic cats cannot be placed in the mushroom house, because domestic cats are highly active and easily damage fungus bags and mushroom beds. At night, an electric grid can be set up around the mushroom house, an electric cat can be deployed, and once the power is plugged in, rodents can be caught. When a rodent touches the electric grid, the electric cat will sound an alarm; after removing the dead rodent, it can be used to catch rodents again. We once caught and killed 70-80 rodents in one night, and after continuous trapping 5-6 times at the mushroom farm, the rodent-catching effect was extremely remarkable.

③ Chemical fumigation Aluminum phosphide tablet fumigation is currently a simple rodent eradication method being promoted. Place half a tablet or one tablet of aluminum phosphide in the rodent hole, then completely seal the hole opening with soil. The tablet absorbs moisture and decomposes inside the rodent hole, releasing phosphine toxic gas to kill the rodents in the hole. Note: phosphine toxic gas is highly toxic. If used in a mushroom house, all hole openings must be tightly sealed with wet mud to prevent the toxic gas from leaking out.

④ Poison bait trapping The prevention and control of rodent damage in edible fungus production is related to consumers' health, so safety factors must be considered when using chemical rodenticides. Anticoagulant chronic rodenticides such as diphacinone sodium, bromadiolone and chlorophacinone should be selected for poison bait trapping. Acute highly toxic rodenticides such as tetramine are strictly prohibited. Because anticoagulant rodenticides act slowly and cause mild poisoning symptoms in rodents, they will not cause rodents to refuse to eat, and the rodent eradication effect is thorough. After chemical rodent eradication, dead rodents should be burned or deeply buried in a timely manner to prevent contamination of edible fungus products and the spread of various diseases. Note that rodenticides should be used in rotation to avoid rodents developing resistance, which could lead to rampant rodent infestations.