Agrodok-40-Small-scale Mushroom Cultivation

Agrodok-series No. 40The AGRODOK-SERIES is a series of low-priced, practical manuals on small-scale andsustainable agriculture in the tropics. AGRODOK booklets are available in English (E),French (F), Portuguese (P) and Spanish (S). Agrodok publications can be ordered fromAGROMISA or CTA.Pig keeping in the tropicsSoil fertility managementPreservation of fruit and vegetablesSmall-scale chicken productionFruit growing in the tropicsSimple construction surveying for rural applicationsGoat keeping in the tropicsPreparation and use of compostThe home garden in the tropicsCultivation of soya and other legumesErosion control in the tropicsPreservation of fish and meatWater harvesting and soil moisture retentionDairy cattle husbandrySmall-scale freshwater fish farmingAgroforestryCultivation of tomatoProtection of stored cereal grains and pulsesPropagating and planting treesBack-yard rabbit keeping in the tropicsOn-farm fish cultureSmall-scale production of weaning foodsProtected cultivationUrban agricultureGranariesMarketing for small-scale producersEstablishing and managing water points for village livestockIdentification of crop damagePesticides: compounds, use and hazardsNon-chemical crop protectionStorage of tropical agricultural productsBeekeeping in the tropicsDuck keeping in the tropicsHatching eggs by hens or in an incubatorDonkeys for transport and tillagePreparation of dairy productsSmall-scale seed productionStarting a cooperativeNon-timber forest productsSmall-scale mushroom cultivationSmall-scale mushroom cultivation – 2Bee productsRainwater harvesting for domestic useEthnoveterinary medicineMitigating the effects of HIV/AIDS in small-scale farmingZoonosesSnail farmingThe Rural Finance Landscape 2005 Agromisa Foundation and CTAISBN Agromisa: 90-8573-038-4, ISBN CTA: 92-9081-303-2P, F, ES, P, F, EP, F, ES, P, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, ES, P, F, ES, P, F, EP, F, ES, P, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, ES, P, F, EP, F, EP, F, ES, P, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, ES, P, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EP, F, EAgrodok 40 - Small-scale mushroom cultivation: oyster, shiitake and wood ear scale mushroomcultivationoyster, shiitake and wood ear mushrooms

Agrodok 40Small-scale mushroomcultivationoyster, shiitake and wood ear mushroomsPeter Oeiwith contributions by Bram van Nieuwenhuijzen

2005 Agromisa Foundation and CTAAll rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, by print, photocopy,microfilm or any other means, without written permission from the publisher.First edition: 2005Authors: Peter Oei, with contributions by Bram van NieuwenhuijzenEditor: Janna de FeijterIllustrators: Barbera Oranje, Mamadi B. JabbiDesign: Eva KokTranslation: Ninette de ZylvaPrinted by: Digigrafi, Wageningen, The NetherlandsISBN Agromisa: 90-8573-038-4ISBN CTA: 92-9081-303-2

ForewordMushroom cultivation fits in very well with sustainable farming andhas several advantages:? It uses agricultural waste products? A high production per surface area can be obtained? After picking, the spent substrate is still a good soil conditionerThis Agrodok contains detailed information on how to grow threekinds of mushrooms: oyster, shiitake and wood ear mushrooms. Thesemushrooms are rather easy to grow on a small scale. Cultivation of thecommon white button mushroom and of the rice straw mushroom isvery different and will therefore be dealt with in another Agrodok.Much of the information presented here is from my book “Mushroomcultivation and appropriate technologies for commercial mushroomgrowers”. By concentrating on three mushroom species only and onrelatively simple technologies, I hope readers can obtain a sustainableprofit from mushroom growing.Bram van Nieuwenhuijzen was the director of the Mushroom Growers’ Training Centre (nowadays known as C Point) at Horst, The Netherlands, for a number of years. He is currently involved in mushroomcultivation projects in several countries as an adviser through PUMNetherlands Senior Experts in The Hague.Peter OeiChairman ECO Consult Foundation and Visiting Professor Fujian Agricultural UniversityForeword3

Contents1Introduction22.12.22.32.4Biology of mushroomsFungiFungus ecologyLife cycle of fungiTemperature ranges of cultivated mushrooms88891233.13.2Mushroom farmsFarm layoutFarm hygiene14141744.14.24.34.44.54.64.74.8Spawn productionThe starter cultureThe sterilisation processClean environmentsCulturesPreparation of mediaPreparation of slantsMother spawnPreparation of the final spawn1820202224272832345Growing oyster mushrooms on pasteurised or‘sterilised’ substratesPreparation of the substrateHeat treatmentsSpawning pasteurized substrateSpawning sterilised bagsSpawn runFruiting/croppingHarvestingCase description: Ahmedabad, IndiaCase description: Bogor, 5.85.946Small-scale mushroom cultivation

5.10 Juncao Technology turns grass into mushrooms5666.16.26.36.46.56.66.7Shiitake cultivation on plastic bagsSubstrate preparationFilling and heat treatmentSpawningSpawn run and mycelial developmentFruitingHarvestingPests and diseases585859596061636377.17.27.37.47.5Wood ear mushrooms on ‘sterilised’ substrateSubstrate preparationHeat treatmentSpawning and spawn runFruitingCase description: the Philippines65656565666688.18.2Post harvest handlingFresh MarketDrying697071Appendix 1: Formulas76Appendix 2: Substrate preparation77Further reading78Useful addresses81Glossary83Contents5

1IntroductionDo you want to grow mushrooms? There are plenty of reasons to doso. Mushrooms are a good cash crop; they are rather easy to grow andare brimming with protein, B vitamins and minerals. They even havemedicinal properties. Time between spawning and harvesting can beas short as three weeks. Furthermore, after the cultivation, you canstill use the substrate as a good soil conditioner.This Agrodok gives you detailed information on the cultivation of oyster, shiitake and wood ear mushrooms. Although many other types ofmushrooms can be grown, we have chosen the ones that can easily becultivated in developing countries using appropriate technology.When choosing your method to grow mushrooms, you have to find ananswer to the following questions:1 Which of the mushrooms do you want to grow? Check the marketand the temperature ranges for fruiting (see paragraph 2.4).2 Can you obtain mushroom spawn (the “seed”) of the species youwant to grow? Chapter 4 shows you how to produce your ownspawn. If you cannot obtain or produce spawn it will not be possibleto grow mushrooms.3 What kind of substrate would you need to be able to grow the desired mushrooms? See Chapter 5.4 How should you treat the substrate? This affects the investmentsyou have to make. Details can be found in the chapters on the specific mushroom species.To understand mushroom growing and the properties of mushrooms,some biological knowledge of the crop is necessary. So, we will startwith the biology of mushrooms.6Small-scale mushroom cultivation

Figure 1: The three mushroom species dealt with in this AgrodokIntroduction7

The AGRODOK-SERIES is a series of low-priced, practical manuals on small-scale and sustainable agriculture in the tropics. AGRODOK booklets are available in English (E), French (F), Portuguese (P) and Spanish (S). Agrodok publications can be ordered from AGROMISA or CTA. 1. Pig keeping in the