CULTIVATIONTIPS ADVISIE On top, but not best
By Jos Hilkens
AdVisie “the mushroom growing consultants”, Herkenbosch
hilkens@mushroomconsulting.nl
On farms that pick manually, the upper bed is often more problematic than on mechani- sed farms as the distance between the edge of the bed and the celling is at least 60 cm more than on mechanised farms. Production on the upper bed is often earlier, with more mushrooms and poorer quality. Loss of quality manifests as an off-white colour caused by more moisture in the stem and cap, faster maturity and brown blemishes. The main cause is poor air flow over the upper bed and temperature differences between the lower and upper zone in the growing room. The best strategy is to improve the air movement over the upper bed, which can usually be achieved by adjusting the air flow control. However, not all growers do this. Growers often get good results by adapting the technical strategy. If mushrooms emerge too soon, growers can place plastic on the upper bed at the start of cool-down. This brings this bed more into line with the other beds and also reduces the number of mushrooms. How long this measure is applied depends on the type of plastic and the required delay. The upper bed always contains more moisture than other beds as evaporation is lower. Our advice is to spray less water on this bed during preparation. Any problems with blemishes on the mushrooms will then vanish. Another problem is pinheads forming too deeply in the casing soil. This makes it difficult to control towards the right number of mushrooms, and casing often sticks and soils the mushrooms. Solve this problem by applying the casing soil more loosely at filling and adding a little more CAC on the upper bed.
Getting the straw balance right Praktisch advies bij: By Con Hermans
AdVisie “the mushroom growing consultants”, Heythuysen
hermans@mushroomconsulting.nl
Teeltoptimalisatie Photos: AdVisie
Compostering van A tot Z
In good compost, air, water and nutrients are all in the right balance. The blades of straw create volume in compost, but also provide a nutrient source. Straw is surrounded by a natural waxy layer that protects it from mould. During fermentation, this layer is decomposed so that nutrients are released for mushroom mycelium. However, too much fermentation will compact the compost structure so it will not contain enough air. The skill lies in finding the right balance between sufficient, or over-fermentation. In previous studies, I have shown that 10% of hard straw blades gives compost considerably more volume. This 10% fraction of hard blades relea- ses less, or no, nutrients to the mushrooms, but does ensure that the remaining 90% of the blades can be optimally utilised. However, if the fraction of hard straw is too high, the balance will tip and not enough nutrients will be released. This will usually be noticed first in poorer mushroom quality and at a later stage in lower production. The photo shows a tray of compost ( top) with a number of hard straw blades that give a voluminous compost. The trays below it contain compost that has visibly fallen apart into hard, insufficiently decomposed particles and enough decomposed blades. In weight as a percentage, this compost has 17% insufficiently decomposed straw blades. In practice this percentage is too high, and for sufficient structure you don’t that many hard blades. Another disadvantage of these hard straw pieces is the reduced effectiveness as CAC material. The mycelium has only had a chance to develop on the surface, and not in the actual blades, so it will die in the casing soil.
de champignonteeltadviseurs
Jos Hilkens +31(0)653 31 6204
Schade analyse en -begroting
(advertisement) Consulting for: the mushroom growing consultants
Con Hermans +31(0)653 29 9396
Jos Hilkens +31(0)653 31 6204
Mushroom growing Disease control 6 MUSHROOM BUSINESS
Composting
Con Hermans +31(0)653 29 9396
www.champignonadvies.nl
www.mushroomconsulting.nl
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