Abstract
Environmental requirements differ across developmental stages of Pleurotus geesteranus, making consistent total and premium-grade production difficult under fixed conditions. We developed a two-stage programme that switched environmental settings when stipes of approximately 50% of fruiting bodies reached 3–4 cm. In March 2025, the programme was implemented in a digital smart mushroom fruiting chamber (DSMFC) and compared concurrently with three reference environments; three additional DSMFC batches assessed consistency. The DSMFC attained a first-flush yield of 304.2 g bag− 1, biological efficiency of 46.7%, and 82.2 fruiting bodies bag− 1, all higher than in the reference environments. Premium-grade (grades I and II combined) fresh weight and proportion were 139.36 g bag− 1 and 46.0%. The higher yield was characterised by more harvested fruiting bodies and higher grade I fresh weight, not increased individual grade II fresh weight. Grade II mushrooms from the DSMFC had longer, thinner stipes; temperature was negatively associated with stipe length, and CO2 concentration was negatively associated with stipe diameter. Across four DSMFC batches, coefficients of variation for batch means of first-flush yield, premium-grade fresh weight, and proportion were below 5%. The stipe-length criterion provides a practical trigger for standardised fruiting management.
Funding
This work was supported by the Scientific Research Start-up Project for Introduced Talents of Guangxi Minzu University (grant no. 2024KJQD218), the Guangxi Science and Technology Major Project (grant no. Guike AA24263038), and the 2025 University-level Scientific Research Project of Guangxi Vocational University of Agriculture (grant no. XKJ2540).
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Lan, S., Li, Y., Luo, L. et al. Two-stage environmental management during fruiting supports higher first-flush premium-grade yield in Pleurotus geesteranus.
Sci Rep (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-73094-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-73094-6
Keywords
Pleurotus geesteranus
- Stage-specific management
- Fruiting environment
- First-flush yield
- Grade-specific output
- Digital mushroom facility
Source: Ecology - nature.com
