The straw
should be dried in the sun for several days, stored if necessary in an
air-tight container and used within two months. The ratio of paddy
straw to mushroom spawn should be 1 kg "prepared" straw to 4% spawn.
Procedure: First the straw must be prepared. The straw should be cut to
3-5 cm pieces. It should then be filled in cloth bags and soaked in
water (1 kg straw to 10 litres water) for 10 hours. The straw should be
weighted down in the water so that no part of it remains above the
level of water.
The next stage is pasteurization. Water must be boiled to a temperature
of 80 to 85oC. When bubbles appear, the soaked straw, surrounded by the
cloth bags, should be weighted down and fully immersed in water. The
bubbles will disappear when the straw is immersed and then reappear.
Thirty minutes after the reappearance of bubbles the straw should be
removed. It should be drained of water and cooled at room temperature,
then spread out on a clean surface and dried for two hours.
The moisture content of the straw should not exceed 60%. To judge the
moisture content one should hold some straw between one's fingers and
squeeze tightly. If only one drop of water comes out, then the moisture
content is correct.
Polythene or polypropylene bags are now required to fill the straw
into.
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