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CULTIVATION TIPS ADVISIE


Make them white, keep them white!


By Jos Hilkens AdVisie ‘the mushroom growing consultants, Herkenbosch hilkens@mushroomconsulting.nl


The colour of mushrooms is one of the key sales and purchasing criteria. Pure white mushrooms – that stay white- are sold with far more ease. Growers can influence the co- lour. Mushrooms with a lot of moisture in the stem and cap appear greyer than mushrooms with little moisture. The photo clearly shows the excess moisture. The key word here is to evaporate continuously, but that is easier said than done. Measures such as CO2 shot and increasing the temperature to create spread work well, but often have a less positive impact on the colour of the mushrooms in the first days of harvesting. It is more difficult to stick to the optimal evaporation pattern with compost that shows too little or too much activity. If you have to apply a lot of corrective measures using heating, cooling or humidifying, and certainly when inlets are opened and closed at the same time or in quick succession, the values will suggest an optimal climate. But this is not the case in practice. When no dehumidifying is necessary, make sure that the climate is corrected using a single parameter - so either heating or cooling. This seems simple, but in practice settings such as the P-band, dead zone, et cetera are often set so that they are unnecessa- rily activated all at the same time. The culprit is often the way humidity is regulated. There is a strong lag effect, and the RH fluctuations simply become greater. Working with just a little or no humidifying at all is possible if the air is gently circulated and the bandwidth of the RH is adjusted downwards. For a good colour, it is almost always better to allow for more evaporation rather than not evaporate enough.


Supplements must reveal their true colours


Praktische doorlichting en advies bij:


By Con Hermans AdVisie ‘de champignonteeltadviseur’ Heythuysen hermans@mushroomconsulting.nl


Photo’s: AdVisie Teelt


The foundations for the development of supplements in the mushroom sector were laid 30 years ago. After treatment with formalin, soybean mill run – the protein-rich by-product of the soybean left over after the oil has been extracted – appeared to be an excellent way of increasing mushroom production. Supplements could make a poor compost richer, but even on a normal compost it was possible to achieve production improvements of up to 3kg/m2. Over time, many substances and supplements have been researched, but nothing has been found to be more effective and safer than soy-based products. However the price of soybean mill run is determined by the global market. Many players are interested in this by-product, which subjects the price to considerable fluctuations, and in recent years has often pushed it sky high. In the past, supplements were yellow due to the pure soybean mill run they contained, but today supplements are almost black due to additives which have added probably to lower the cost price and not to enhance the quality. The photo shows five supplements that are used in the Netherlands. Y


Jos Hilkens +31(0)653 31 6204


ou can often see at once that other substances have been added, Ziekten


the smell is often also different. The added substances are not stated on the packaging. The 48% protein concentration may well be guaranteed, but no mention is made of its origin or whether the protein is identical for the mushroom. It makes me wonder. I think the time has come for an independent study of what the mushrooms think about all these additives. It’s not all about the cheapest product, but more about being prepared to pay a little more for a product that really delivers optimal results.


Compostering


Con Hermans +31(0)653 29 9396


advertisement Consulting for:


Jos Hilkens +31(0)653 31 6204


Composting Disease control


Mushroom- growing


Con Hermans +31(0)653 29 9396


www.champignonadvies.nl


www.mushroomconsulting.nl


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