GROWING GOURMET - Anto2ni.it

Figure 378. Bouquets of Pleurotus ostreatus are easy
to harvest and have an extended shelf life. The bouquets
usually snap off, originating from small,
localized points of formation.
younger mushrooms. Mushroom bouquets can
be sold much like broccoli. All these features
combined extend shelf life far beyond that of
individual mushrooms and make clusters
highly desirable. All the gilled mushrooms de-
HARVESTING, STORING AND PACKING 425
scribed in this book can be harvested as bouquets.
Each species passes through an ideal stage as
the mushrooms mature. For most species, the
ideal stage is when the caps are still convex, and
before flattening out. At some magic moment
in the maturity of a mushroom, the mushroom
changes in its form while not appreciably increasing
in its mass. Cultivators have long noted
that the flesh of a mushroom at the "drumstick"
stage is much thicker than when the mushroom
is fully mature. The loss of flesh, directly above
the gills to the top of the cap, appears to be reproportioned
to the expanding cap margin and
the extension of the spore-producing gills. No
real advantage, in terms of weight, is realized
in picking a fully mature mushroom versus one
that is a mature adolescent. In fact, mature adolescents
store longer and taste better.
The ideal stage for harvest of each species
is described in Chapter 21 under each species'
growth parameters. Please refer to that
chapter for helpful hints in harvesting. Since
cropping is labor intensive, more efficient
harvesting methods are always being explored.
Cropping mushrooms in the most
cost-effective manner largely depends on the
structure of the fruiting frames. In Holland,
mechanical harvesters have been devised to
Figure 379. Four strains of Pleurotus ostreatus, in 5 lb. boxes, ready for delivery to restaurants.
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