How to supplement nutrition during edible mushroom cultivation

1. The methods for supplementing nutrition to edible mushrooms include spraying, pouring, and soaking. The most commonly used method is to prepare a nutrient solution of a certain concentration and spray it on the mushroom bed or mushroom blocks. When spraying during the young bud stage, be careful to spray the nutrient solution on areas without mushrooms or near small mushroom buds, and rinse the fruiting bodies with clean water after spraying. It is best to spray the nutrient solution after harvesting. For mushroom blocks and logs, the soaking method can also be used to supplement nutrition, that is, soaking them in a prepared nutrient solution and then taking them out, usually after each flush of mushrooms has finished being harvested. On the mushroom bed, the pouring method can also be used to supplement nutrition, that is, scraping open the casing soil on the surface of the mushroom bed, inserting a funnel into the compost, pouring in the nutrient solution, and then covering it again. Usually, the distance between pouring holes should be about 10 cm, and about 5 ml of solution should be poured into each hole.

2. Alternate supplementation. Glucose is a carbon nutrient, urea is a nitrogen nutrient, and potassium dihydrogen phosphate is a phosphorus and potassium nutrient, but if only one of these nutrients is supplied for a long time, it is difficult to achieve the expected effect. Therefore, various nutrients must be supplemented alternately or nutrient solutions must be mixed and applied to meet the edible mushrooms' demands for different nutrients. On the mushroom bed, usually a nutrient solution that increases nutrition is applied first, and then a high-efficiency nutrient agent is applied afterward, as this is beneficial to fruiting body growth. If the hormone method is used to stimulate the growth of edible mushrooms, the hormone should be used after supplementing the nutrient agent.

3. Supplement in appropriate amounts. If too much is supplemented at one time, the compost will become too wet, which is instead unfavorable to mycelial growth. Therefore, it should be applied in an appropriate amount according to the moisture of the cultivation material. If the moisture of the medium is relatively high, the concentration of the nutrient solution should be appropriately increased, the amount of water added should be reduced, and after application, ventilation should be used to disperse moisture.

4. Organic fertilizer materials used must not contain contaminating microorganisms or insect eggs. The compost and manure used must be fermented and decomposed or disinfected. Plant infusions such as soybean milk juice and potato should be prepared and used immediately, and must not be left standing for a long time to prevent spoilage.

5. Pay attention to environmental effects. Usually when the temperature is above 20°C, mushroom mycelia find it difficult to form fruiting bodies, and liquid supplementation should be stopped. Glucose solution, soybean milk juice, human manure and urine liquid, etc. are all unsuitable for application above 18°C. If the mushroom bed (block) has already been infected by contaminating microorganisms, they must first be eliminated before liquid supplementation can be carried out.