1. Nutrition: Pleurotus abalonus falls under with wood-rotting fungus and it holds poor ability on decomposing wood. A series of raw materials are listed such as cottonseed gull, corn, sawdust, straw, bran and corn powder. Sugar and calcium carbonate could be used as auxiliary materials. After reasonable preparation of compost, various nutriments could be met on the growth of Pleurotus abalonus.
2. Temperature: Pleurotus abalonus belongs to a kind of moderate and high temperature fungus, 20-32 degrees Celsius is preferred during the growth period, the optimal temperature is 25-28 degrees Celsius, the preferential temperature during the growth period of sporocarps is 25-30 degrees Celsius and the optimal status is 26-28 degrees Celsius. More importantly, sporocarps refuse to occur at above 35 degrees Celsius or below 20 degrees Celsius.
3. Humidity: For Pleurotus abalonus cultivation, the preferred water content on compost is at 60%-65%, the optimal relative air humidity of cultivation room is at 60%, and 90% in fruiting room.
4. Air : Growth of mycelia has no strict requirements for air. However, sufficient oxygen is needed during the differentiation and growth period of sporocarps. Besides, poor ventilation promotes sporocarps that are in small caps and long stipes.
5. Illumination: Illumination is not required during the growth period of mycelia while certain scattered light is needed during the growth period of sporocarps.

According to mushroom quotation provided by Shenyang Shengfa Fruits & Vegetables Market, on March 11, King oyster mushroom, Enoki mushroom, Oyster mushroom and Pholiota nameko are 4 varieties that show price fall.

1.Price of King oyster mushroom has dropped from 9.5 to 7.5 CNY per kg, indicating 21% of decline range.

2.Price of Enoki mushroom has dropped from 8 to 7.5 CNY per kg, indicating 6% of decline range.

3.Price of Oyster mushroom has dropped from 6 to 4 CNY per kg, indicating 33% of decline range.

4.Price of Pholiota nameko has dropped from 10 to 6 CNY per kg, indicating 40% of decline range.

“Price of Shiitake mushroom, Button mushroom and Agrocybe cylindracea is respectively at 10 CNY, 14 CNY and 10 CNY per kg in our market,” introduces manager of Shenyang Shengfa Fruits & Vegetables Market passionately.

According to mushroom quotation provided by Guangdong Haijixing Agricultural Products Market, on March 6, Superior Shiitake mushroom, Oyster mushroom, King oyster mushroom, Button mushroom, Enoki mushroom, Pleurotus geesteranus and Seafood mushroom are 7 varieties that show price fall.

1.Price of Superior Shiitake mushroom has dropped from 18 to 17 CNY per kg, indicating 5% of decline range.

2.Price of Oyster mushroom has dropped from 10 to 9 CNY per kg, indicating 10% of decline range.

3.Price of King oyster mushroom has dropped from 7 to 6.8 CNY per kg, indicating 2% of decline range.

4.Price of Button mushroom has dropped from 13 to 12 CNY per kg, indicating 7% of decline range.

5.Price of Enoki mushroom has dropped from 7 to 5.5 CNY per kg, indicating 21% of decline range.

6.Price of Pleurotus geesteranus has dropped from 16 to 14 CNY per kg, indicating 12% of decline range.

7.Price of Seafood mushroom has dropped from 11 to 10 CNY per kg, indicating 9% of decline range.

“Price of Agrocybe cylindracea and Shiitake mushroom is respectively at 13 and 14 CNY per kg in our market,” introduces manager of Guangdong Haijixing Agricultural Products Market.

According to mushroom quotation provided by Shandong Huangshan Vegetable & Fruit Wholesale Market, on March 4, Shiitake mushroom, King oyster mushroom, Button mushroom, Enoki mushroom, Brown Shimeji mushroom, White beech mushroom and Seafood mushroom are 7 varieties that show price fall.

1.Price of Shiitake mushroom has dropped from 12 to 10 CNY per kg, indicating 16% of decline range.

2.Price of King oyster mushroom has dropped from 8 to 7.5 CNY per kg, indicating 6% of decline range.

3.Price of Button mushroom has dropped from 10 to 8 CNY per kg, indicating 420% of decline range.

4.Price of Enoki mushroom has dropped from 7.5 to 4.5 CNY per kg, indicating 40% of decline range.

5.Price of Brown Shimeji mushroom has dropped from 20 to 15 CNY per kg, indicating 25% of decline range.

6.Price of White beech mushroom has dropped from 18.3 to 13.3 CNY per kg, indicating 27% of decline range.

7.Price of Seafood mushroom has dropped from 10 to 7 CNY per kg, indicating 30% of decline range.

“Price of Superior Shiitake mushroom and Oyster mushroom is respectively at 18 and 8 CNY per kg in our market,” introduces manager of Shandong Huangshan Vegetable & Fruit Wholesale Market.

picture: Natuurvleescoöperatie Westerkwartier

The province of Groningen has made a subsidy of 27,000 euros available for the new Natural Meat Cooperation Westerkwartier. In addition, 15,000 euros also goes to the cultivation of organic shiitake mushrooms.

The natural meat cooperative is part of the Westerkwartier Area Cooperation. In the natural meat cooperative, ten dairy farmers and five meat farmers are currently working together with the Forestry Commission and the Kroon Meat slaughterhouse in Groningen, says chairman Alex Datema. The farmers bring in bulls that would normally go to veal farming. Most are 50 percent Belgian Blue. They are geostated and slaughtered at the age of two years.

The animals walk either on the cattle farmers' own land or on a 25-hectare site of Forest Commission that the Cooperative uses. That area can still expand. "A lot of natural land is currently being laid out in the Westerkwartier, and in this way they continue to be used for agriculture," he explains.

100 in 2021
Two years ago, in the run-up to the official foundation, farmers already started keeping bulls. The first bulls have already been slaughtered and the quality was good, according to Datema. "We can probably slaughter 40 this year and around 100 next year," he expects.

For selling the meat, the cooperation is now also joining forces with Kroon Meat. The subsidy will be used to further expand the organization and to develop a market concept aimed at regional sales. Groningen farmers who are interested in taking part can register via the cooperations website.

Tree trunks
In addition, the province is investing in shiitake mushrooms as meat substitutes. The company Igro starts working in Tjuchem with the organic cultivation of shiitake. They are commonly grown on straw and sawdust, which has the disadvantage that too many residues are left in the mushroom, according to the province.
Igro wants to grow them on tree trunks from the Forest Commission. Grafting is done with the help of staff from social workplaces. If the method turns out to be effective, this cultivation can become an easily accessible additional form of income with a good yield for arable farmers whoi have some space on their land, according to the province.

Source: Agrio -Veldpost
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According to mushroom quotation provided by Beijing Xinfadi Agricultural products Wholesale Market, on March 2, Enoki mushroom, Button mushroom, Shiitake mushroom, Superior Shiitake mushroom, Pholiota nameko, Cordyceps militaris and Drumstick mushroom are 7 varieties that show price fall.

1.Price of Enoki mushroom has dropped from 9 to 6.25 CNY per kg, indicating 30% of decline range.

2.Price of Button mushroom has dropped from 18 to 10 CNY per kg, indicating 44% of decline range.

3.Price of Shiitake mushroom has dropped from 10 to 6 CNY per kg, indicating 40% of decline range.

4.Price of Superior Shiitake mushroom has dropped from 20 to 14 CNY per kg, indicating 30% of decline range.

5.Price of Pholiota nameko has dropped from 15 to 12.5 CNY per kg, indicating 16% of decline range.

6.Price of Cordyceps militaris has dropped from 12 to 10 CNY per kg, indicating 16% of decline range.

7.Price of Drumstick mushroom has dropped from 10 to 8 CNY per kg, indicating 20% of decline range.

“Price of King oyster mushroom is at 9 CNY per kg. Affected by COVID-19, price of mushroom keeps go down in our market,” introduces manager of Beijing Xinfadi Agricultural products Wholesale Market.

After the last water during the incubation in the casing soil, the grower wants the mycelium to grow onto the surface.
To ensure a good recovery of the mycelium in this period the right settings for the room climate are essential.
An RH at a minimum of 95%. A very slow air speed, if possible zero and an adequate room temperature. That room temperature should be as close to the optimum for vegetative growth as possible. That optimum temperature is 25° C to 26° C.
This means often a room temperature of around 21° as a minimum.
Then the mycelium has the right conditions to grow onto the surface.
The next question is: how high do I let it grow ?
Higher means better control of the number of primordia, so no surprises about the number of mushrooms growing out. Higher also means easier picking so a higher pick rate. Another positive experience is that clustering is easier avoided.

But the big dis-advantage of having the mycelium higher on the surface is that the climate conditions have to be perfect. The influence of the climate onto the mycelium and the primordia is bigger. So one moment of for instance too low RH means that you will lose primordia.
Deeper mycelium is also easier to stagger the mushrooms so that is an advantage too. Another point is the fact if the grower can stop the mycelium when it grows too high. Overlay as that is called makes the outgrow of primordia more difficult. They come from underneath the blanket of mycelium.

So what determines the choice?
Both ways have their pro’s and con’s.
But for me the crucial point to choose a way is the technical capacity of the farm and the experience of the grower. If you are able to stop the mycelium at all times, still create the stagger and have perfect control of the environmental conditions, grow white.
If you are not sure of all this, grow deeper into the surface of the casing soil. So grow blacker.
Generally blacker is safer.

Does a higher filling weight give better quality?
The filling weight, i.e. the number of kilos of compost per square metre, should be between 80-95 kg/m2. The general trend is the more compost, the better the mushroom quality. But is that right?
Mushroom growing is all about the difference between air temperature and compost temperature, referred to by growers as activity. Activity is essential to grow good quality mushrooms. As the compost is warmer than the air, moisture is released in the form of evaporation. This caused the mushrooms to grow.

Managing activity
Managing activity is key to mushroom growing. So too much activity, because the filling weight is too high, results in faster, uncontrollable growth. For example, a first flush that produces 8 to 10 kg/m2 of mushrooms on the third day. The quality has been lost. The compost temperature has risen too quickly to 25-26 degrees Celsius. So any added value of filling that extra kilo of compost has been wasted. Say you had filled 90 kg/m2 of compost. In that case a filling weight of 85 kg/m2 would have been a better choice. This makes it easier to manage and control activity.

Casing soil
The casing soil on the compost plays a significant role here. The more activity there is, the more the casing soil dehydrates. This means that more mycelium grows in the casing soil. Dried out casing soil cannot absorb water, and neither can mycelium. What is left is dry casing soil that disrupts the water transport from the compost to the mushrooms. The casing soil effectively acts as insulation blanket. So there is activity, but little growth.

Best production
I see the highest yields and the best quality, from the first to the third flush, in situations where compost activity is well managed and controlled and the casing soil stays soft and wet.

Mark den Ouden

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