Processes Involved in Mushroom Farms for growing Mushroom Spawns

When a mushroom attains maturity, the fungus is capable of producing millions of spores which are microscopic. The spores remain on the underside of the mushroom cap. The function of the spores is very similar to that of the seeds of plants. But the growers do not use the spores of the mushroom to seed the compost because the nature of germination is unpredictable. So there is a lack of reliability. The mycelium of the fungus can undergo vegetative propagation from the germinated spores. So, spawn makers can multiply the spawn culturing. Mycelium propagation requires special facilities. The mycelia production vegetative on agar or grains is called spawn. The commercial farmers buy these spawns from the companies.

Sterilization

To make the Mushroom Spawns, the leading spawn makers like Agrinoon start by sterilizing the mixture of chalk, water, and millet grains. You can use wheat or rye grain in place of millet. Earlier, the growth medium for the spawns was sterilized horse manures which were known as the brick spawn or the manure spawn. When a little bit of mycelium attaches to the sterilized grain, you have to shake the grain along with the mycelia at least three times for 14 days at intervals of 4 days.

Colony production

The grain gradually has a colony of mycelium and at this point, it is called Mushroom Spawns. You can refrigerate the spawns for a few months. This cooling will help you to prepare the spawns in advance so that you can serve the orders immediately. The spawn distribution on the compost must be thorough and uniform. Earlier, human hands used to do the broadcasting of the spawns and ruffling them with the compost using specific tools. But modern makers use spawning machine for the bed system. The apparatus can mix the spawn with the compost while moving along the conveyor belt or while falling on the tray from the belt.

Supplementation

Long back, the farmers observed an increase in the yield of spawns when the compost had an addition of protein or lipid supplements during spawning or casing. The return could have increased by 0%. But excessive stimulation of competitor molds in the compost or overheating limited the benefit noticeably. But it was seen that on encapsulating the microdroplets of the vegetable oils within a coat of denatured protein, then you can get rid of the disadvantages. So currently, many supplements are available in the market that you can use for spawning for stimulating the mushroom yield.

Growth of spawns

After mixing the spawn with the compost, maintain the temperature of the compost at 75 to 80 degree Fahrenheit. Maintain a high level of relative humidity to ensure that the compost surface or the spawn is never dry. The spawn begins to grow to produce a network of mycelia covering the compost. Eventually, the mycelia from all the spawns integrate forming a spawning bed. The spawn appears like a bluish white mass after the fusion. The spawn generates heat, and so, it is essential to control the temperature externally.

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