HARVESTING
- Look for mature mushrooms.
Mushrooms are ready to be picked 2 – 3 days after they first appear.
Pick mushrooms gently by grasping stalk and pulling out slowly.
Note: Mushrooms must be harvested at the most appropriate time. If too small, they cannot fetch a good price. If too big, their conservation period is reduced; they are not so sweet and tasty. Harvesting should be done two or three times a day.
- Put mushrooms in order in a basket, about 5-8 kg per basket. Trim and peel by cutting at the base of the stalk to make the mushroom clean. Place mushrooms in basket.
- Weigh all mushrooms and take notes.
Note: A bag of mushrooms should yield between 250 – 350 grams of mushrooms in 4 to 5 flushes.
Bags lose much of their weight once they have exhausted their pro
Step 13. PACKAGING
Packaging
Before packaging, make sure all mushrooms are well-trimmed.
For selling fresh mushrooms on the market, little or no packaging is required. Mushrooms are weighed and placed in paper or plastic bags.
Mushrooms cannot keep for long and therefore all mushrooms must be sold quickly the following harvesting. They can keep in a refrigerator for 12 – 24 hours. To avoid humidity from accumulating in the bag, place mushrooms in bags and blow air in them. Tie the bag with a rubber band.
If no refrigerator is available, place mushrooms on banana leaves in a cool area, or put them on top of a water under the shade in a well-ventilated place.
Know Your Substrate
All of these varieties of mushroom love oak sawdust that is supplemented. We recommend the soy hull supplementation for the best result. Shiitake, Lion's Mane, Oyster, Phoenix Oyster, Pioppini, Reishi, Chicken of the Woods, Maitake, Nameko. Get your own fast fruiting...
Troubleshooting Mushroom Farm Issues
TROUBLE SHOOTING “Preventing is better than solving the problems” Or a penny of prevention is better than a pound of cure. If your Mycelium fails to form. I can me the following things. Improper initiation strategy. Consult parameter of growth. Alter moisture,...
Opening your incubated mushroom bag
OPENING BAGS Clean around and inside the fruiting body house using a broom. Transfer mature spawn bags to the mushroom fruiting body house using a trolley (or prepare them for fruiting). Place bags on shelves. Open bags according to type 3.1 Oyster mushrooms- Hed...
Incubation of your grow bags
INCUBATING BAGS Clean around and inside the incubation house using a broom. Always inspect for cleanliness before entering with new spawn bags. After inoculation, transfer substrate bags to mushroom incubation house. Place bags on shelves for incubation. Incubation....
Inoculating your grow bags
INOCULATING BAGS WITH SORGHUM SEEDS Note: The inoculation room must be kept very clean and free of diseases to avoid contamination. Avoid sunshine from entering the area. Prepare materials: Alcohol lamp Sorghum coated with spawn Fire Square paper (5’’ x 5’’) Rubber...
Sterilizing your mushroom grow bags
Sterilizing Your Bags There are many ways to sterilize your bags. For small operations (new farms) using a pressure cooker can help you sterilize several small bags at one time. At this time we are considering offering grow bags, and even possibly pre-sterilized grow...
Preparing Mushroom Grow Bags
PRODUCING SUBSTRATE BAGS Prepare materials: Grow bags (polypropylene 7” x 12.5”) alt sizes may be used. The Bags should be grow bags that withstand heat, and have filters attached Oak Pellets Soy Hull Pellets Optional ingredients based on variety and desired yield....
Multiplying your mushroom spawn
MULTIPLYING SPAWN ON SORGHUM SEEDS Prepare materials: Sorghum seeds Bottles (flask type) Cotton (gauze) Paper squares 7 cm x 7 cm Rubber bands Alcohol lamp Alcohol bottle Note: Various types of grains can be used: Sorghum, millet, wheat Grains must: Have been recently...
Mushroom Tissue Cultures
Tissue Cultures Prepare materials: Potatoes: 200 gr. Dextrose: 20 gr. Agar powder: 20 gr. Water: 1 liter. Cotton (gauze) Note: Visually check potatoes for spots or rot. Buy dextrose and Agar of commercial grade. Wash and cut potatoes into one-centimeter cubes; leave...