Shiitake Mushrooms
In our previous article, Shiitake growing requirements, we talked about the initial stages of Shiitake Mushroom production.
Essentially, we mentioned the materials you need for production, including the grow house and substrates.
We also mentioned about how you go about preparing the substrate to plant your mushrooms. Now, in this subsequent article, we look at four key stags of shiitake mushroom farming namely: innoculation, incubation, cold water shocking, and fruiting.
Take this two-minute read to introduce yourself to the processes.
Inoculation
This is the process by which you place grain spawn in the bag that contains the substrate. It is advisable to inoculate the grain spawn at a rate of 10% if one is a beginner and reduce this percentage as one advance. This increases the chances of successfully producing as a beginner.
Inoculation takes in a sterile air room in microseconds to reduce the chances of contamination. Hygiene is the most important aspect to consider at this stage. Close the inoculated bags and incubate them.
Incubation
Innoculation is the process by which the inoculated bags are placed in a dark or lit room for colonization to occur. For spawn run, it can take 2-3 months depending on the shiitake variety and the conditions availed.
Maintain temperatures of 23-250C during this stage for optimum colonization. The incubation room should always remain sterile before any production begins.
Cold Water Shocking
Shiitake mushroom naturally grows during cold seasons when temperatures are low. Coldwater shocking triggers the pinning process which initiates production. This can only be done when the mycelium has created a bumpy formation, to prevent them from disintegrating. This is done by removing the bag first and soaking them in the cold water of 6-8 degrees for 15min. Ice bags can be used to lower the water temperature.
Fruiting
The main aim of cold-water shocking is to initiate pinning, which later develops to the vegetative part of the mushroom, ‘fruiting’. After soaking for 15min, the blocks are moved to the fruiting room where they take 3-4days to start fruiting. This depends on the species and external conditions provided by the grower.
At the growing room, the temperature should be aimed at 18 degrees C. Some shiitake variety performs best at 22-26 degrees C during fruiting.
It’s always advisable during Shiitake mushroom production to understand which variety is in production and its requirements for optimum management.
Figure 1 Image Credit: Fieldforest.net
References
Growing Shiitake Mushrooms – FreshCap Mushrooms. (2021). Retrieved 12 October 2021, from https://learn.freshcap.com/growing/growing-shiitake-mushrooms/
A Complete Guide to Shiitake Mushrooms – GroCycle. (2021). Retrieved 12 October 2021, from https://grocycle.com/shiitake-mushrooms/
