How and when do you harvest mushrooms?

Mushrooms have a production cycle of 3 months and 3 weeks. It starts with composting and ends with steaming after harvest.

Growing mushrooms using the best techniques yields up to 4 pounds per square foot. Averaging 3.12 pounds per square foot. A food mushroom grower ensures that all factors are monitored and controlled for maximum yield. Experience is of great importance in the commercial production of this mushroom.

Sure, the basics of growing mushrooms are important, the knowledge behind harvesting is also important and needs to be well understood to avoid yield losses.

In this article I would explain when and how this delicate crop can be harvested and the best way to store your crop yield. Sit tight and prepare to become enlightened.

Growing mushrooms is a time sensitive process. Knowing the exact times to pick them up is more difficult than knowing how to pick them up. If they are harvested at the wrong time, it can reduce the quality and quantity of your crops.

The window of time between picking too early and too late is very narrow, which is why it is very difficult to know when the time is right.

Timing is everything in mushroom production.

As I mentioned earlier, there is very little time left before the pining process and harvest time.

An expert explained the harvest of Psilocybe cubensis.

This magic mushroom is one of the most popular but easy to cultivate mushrooms. This mushroom has time to harvest a few days after the pining phase.

If you wait too long after it’s stuck, the mushroom stick can develop into a fruiting body. In general, this window lasts around one to three days.

How to determine the best time to harvest

The best time to harvest these magic mushrooms is when the membrane at the bottom of the mushroom cap is closed and about to cut.

This is done to prevent these fungi from spreading. When a membrane breaks, it opens the cap of the fungus, allowing the spores to enter the mycelial substrate of these fungi.

The use of this physical event for judgment can easily be overlooked, but it is the most perfect way to determine the right time to pull out these magic mushrooms.

Just get out; When your mushrooms are no longer intact, and when they look like they are peeling off, harvest them. It is better to harvest too early than to harvest too late.

Spores are black in color and their release causes some mushroom caps to become stained with their black and colored oil appearance. Most importantly, harvesting just before these spores are released will greatly increase the quality of your yield.

Harvest your mushrooms

You now know the right time to harvest your mushrooms. Now you need to know how to perfectly carry out the process of harvesting these mushrooms.

As with most consumables, all hygienic conditions must be met when collecting or harvesting your magic mushrooms. To avoid the products becoming contaminated with bacteria and other harmful compounds.

Materials you will need include latex gloves, tweezers, a container for the harvested mushrooms, a mushroom knife, and a brush.

The next steps are the most effective and prudent methods for harvesting these mushrooms in a native setting. In most native settings, the farmer must hand harvest without a mushroom knife.

Step 1: cleaning

Use sterile latex gloves or use bare hands. Make sure to wash your hand and scrub with soap and water before you start harvesting.

In addition, all tools to be used must be cleaned / sterilized before being used on freshly produced mushrooms.

Step 2: pull out

Only two fingers can be used. Position both fingers at the base of the mushroom near the ground. Carefully turn the stem counterclockwise with very little pressure. This will gently pull out the bottom of the stem. You can now bend the stem a little so that the strands that are still holding the stump break off without damaging the mycelial network. This network is located below the stem.

Step 3: picking

This step applies to shorter and more delicate mushrooms that cannot be pulled out of the ground. They are mostly difficult to reach. You can carefully select them with tweezers.

Step 4: cleaning

First, you’ll use a brush to wipe off peat moss or other substrates that are clinging to the stem.

Do not rinse mushrooms under running water!

After that, clean all the materials used.

Some home builders prefer to cut off the stump to remove the stress of cleaning the substrate attached to the base.

For commercial producers

Must have a mushroom knife. When mushrooms are grown commercially, there is very little time to harvest the many mushrooms that can be found per square meter of large acreage.

With the mushroom knife, the farmer makes a smooth cut at the base of the stem. The stump remains.

Harvest too late

Harvesting after the spores have been released and the fungal veils stained will reduce the value of your mushroom. It mostly ruins the aesthetic appeal of the batch of mushrooms.

For example, Psilocybe cubensis have golden caps and white stems. If you harvest late, its perfect coloring will be ruined by the dark and oily color of the spores released.

Conclusion: storage of harvested mushrooms

The condition of your harvested mushrooms will depend on how they are stored.

If your mushrooms are grown on a small scale, the yield will be quite low. But mostly more than the farmer can consume in one sitting. It can be stored in the refrigerator if used in less than 10 days. If not, a drying process must take place. On a commercial scale, the farmer realizes an above-average yield process.

When drying, the mushroom needles are evenly distributed over a surface, with enough space between each mushroom. At room temperature, drying is completed within 10 days. A dehydrator can be used for a faster and faster drying process.

While there is still a lot to learn, this overview would be useful for mushroom picking.

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