WATERING 92% water attractively packaged
The main component, up to 92%, of a mushroom is water. Water also accounts by far for the highest proportion of raw materials used in mushroom growing. Despite this, attention usually focuses on compost and casing soil – but these materials mainly
comprise water too. How does water get added to the mushroom production cycle? By John Peeters
A
ll organic matter and blends, such as compost and casing soil too, naturally contain a percentage of water. In the case of compost,
water is found in straw, stable bedding and poultry manure. To create compost with a moisture content of between 61 and 66%, usual with incubated compost, a lot more water must be added during the composting process. The greatest volume is added to the blend during phase I of the composting process – mixing and fermenting.
Goody water or leachate
Assuming the compost is made using straw, this material is soaked before the composting process actually starts. In composting terms, this is called pre-wet. Pre-wet is increasingly done by soaking the straw in a tank filled with goody water or leachate. This is water that drains out during the composting process and is collected in a tank. The big advantage of goody water, provided it is well-aerated, is the many useful microorganisms it contains that encou- rage a good composting process. Insufficiently aerated goody water will start to stink and anaerobic organisms form that are detrimental to the process. Horse manure is also usually sprayed with goody water before being mixed with the pre-wet straw. A compost mixing line has a series of built-in nozzles that sprinkle the compost so it gradually gets wetter as it proceeds along the line. At the first mixing, the compost will generally already contain more than the half of the final water content. Chicken manure also contains moisture. The content in broiler manure varies between 30 to 50%, while chicken slurry has an even higher moisture content. The rest of the water is added when the compost is
8 MUSHROOM BUSINESS
A relatively new development is
installing flexible pipes in the
casing soil so the casing can be
irrigated without wetting the mushrooms.
turned later on during the phase I process. This is usually done on the mixing line or the belt used to turn the compost. Once phase I is complete, fresh water can also be added to ensure a high enough moisture content in the compost for phase I. Depending on the struc- ture, the moisture content of phase I compost is 71-74%.
Incubated compost After phase II, pasteurising and conditioning, watering is generally avoided because of the risk of creating sticky compost with pores that may become blocked during incubation. Throughout the entire composting process, it is crucial that enough oxygen penetrates the compost mass as the microorganisms that help decompose the compost need both water and oxygen. A correct balance between the moisture content and structure is therefore essential for composters. More water can be added to compost with a
Water is always added when the materials are mixed during the phase I composting process.
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