Hengjian Township, Lushi County: the Transformation Dream of Lentinus edodes growers

On February 23, Haijiang, a major producer of edible fungi in Hengjian Township, Lushi County, while introducing his experience, picked up branches and sent them to the grinder, and the discharge immediately spurted sawdust with white flowers. He said: "the Beginning of Spring is early this year, so it is necessary to prepare the raw materials for growing Lentinus edodes in spring early to ensure that bags can be made and inoculated in February and March, when the temperature is low, the air is dry, and the activity of miscellaneous bacteria is weak."

In the wheat field not far away, the shredder rumbled, and some mushroom farmers were crushing sawdust. In the distant fields, some mushroom farmers are preparing for the development of Morchella cultivation. Just after the fifth day of the first lunar month, mushroom farmers began to work.

Haijiang's mood is as clear as the sky in early spring. He is the president of the Lentinus edodes Association in Mazhuanghe Village of the township. He has 15 years of experience in the production of edible fungi. When it comes to cultivating Lentinus edodes, he goes on and on: "over the years, our family has become rich by cultivating bag mushrooms. We have built three-story buildings, bought motorcycles and tricycles, and bought computers and the most fashionable household appliances. This is indeed a good project for our farmers to get rich." According to reports, under the policy guidance and financial support of the Lushi county party committee and county government, farmers in the county are becoming more and more active in cultivating Lentinus edodes. With the popularization and application of advanced and applicable cultivation techniques, the output and quality of Lentinus edodes have been significantly improved. In 2015, the county developed 91.98 million bags of shiitake mushrooms, achieving a comprehensive output value of more than 686 million yuan, earning US $31.15 million from exports and a per capita income of more than 5000 yuan for mushroom farmers. Due to the special geographical environment and climatic conditions, the Lentinus edodes produced in this county is large, thick, tender, delicious and nutritious, and has been certified as a pollution-free product in Henan Province. In addition to supplying the domestic market, it is also exported to Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam and Thailand. In order to do a good job in intensive production, six new varieties of edible fungi such as Morchella and Cordyceps militaris were introduced, the new technologies of reflective net and recycling of waste bags were demonstrated and popularized, and six standardized demonstration bases were built to demonstrate the transformation of traditional cultivation models for the majority of mushroom farmers.

"you see, every household in our village is just like me." Haijiang pointed to the village where bungalows and small buildings crisscross in the distance. "our village relies on the development of bag mushrooms, and most of the villagers live in small buildings and bungalows." Last year, I developed 10,000 bags, with a total income of more than 100,000 yuan, and I will develop another 10,000 bags this year. With the full implementation of the natural forest ban, the development of traditional edible mushrooms with bag materials is facing the current situation of shortage of raw materials. I have participated in the training course for the promotion of new varieties of edible fungi organized by the County Bureau of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry. This year, I plan to try to grow 3 mu of Morchella in cultivated land. We ordinary people should also keep up with the situation, actively transform and develop new varieties of edible fungi, and directly plant edible fungi on the land in the future. " At this point, there was a happy smile on Haijiang's face.