Successfully researched the method of breeding and cultivating straw mushrooms on banana leaves

​(News Portal – Dong Nai) - Recently, Ms. Nguyen Thi My's research group (Hung Loc Agricultural Research Center, Hung Thinh commune, Trang Bom district) found a method to breed and cultivate straw mushrooms on banana trunks and leaves. The new method won Second Prize at the Dong Nai Province Technical Innovation Contest in 2023. ​

Ms. Nguyen Thi My at Hung Loc Agricultural Research Center's mushroom farm 

From experience and ideas

When mentioning what inspired her to find ways to breed and cultivate straw mushrooms on banana leaves, Ms. My said that the province's banana growing area currently accounts for 71% of the southeast region. Furthermore, the banana growing area are increasing due to the move towards exporting bananas to foreign countries. It is worth mentioning that after harvesting bananas, the trunks and leaves are left in the fields. The trunks and banana leaves have a high fiber content similar to straw, so they can be used to grow mushrooms. Therefore, using banana trunks and leaves as a substrate to breed and cultivate straw mushrooms is practical, both creating quality straw mushrooms and helping mushroom growers reduce production input costs and increase their income.

While using social network, Ms. My's group saw a method of growing straw mushrooms on banana leaves, but no one has found a way to breed them. From then on, Ms. My and her friends who shared a passion for mushrooms discussed and decided to research a new growing method in Dong Nai province. The group named the model of breeding and cultivating straw mushrooms on banana leaf stems and officially implemented it in mid-2023.

Breeding and cultivating straw mushrooms on banana leaves is a brand new concept, so Ms. My's group encountered many setbacks and challenges in the beginning. For example, in the propagation part, the group used sub-standards dried banana trunks, so when making the seed, it made the material become mushy when making contact with water. As for growing straw mushrooms, the group soaked banana leaves in lime water for a short time, so the durability of the banana leaves was deteriorated, making straw mushroom cultivation not very effective... However, Ms. My's group was not discouraged, on the contrary, they always tried to successfully implement the method.

“The purpose of our research is to take advantage of locally available materials to propagate and cultivate straw mushrooms, as well as diversify sources of materials for propagating and cultivating straw mushrooms; especially we want to help protect the environment by using agricultural waste and contributing to social security" - Ms. My confided.

A practical method for farmers

Up to now, the propagation and cultivation of straw mushrooms on banana leaves by My's group has brought many positive results. Specifically, the production of straw mushroom varieties using banana leaf stems allows the spawn time to mature 2-3 days faster than market varieties and gives straw mushroom productivity equivalent or higher than that of those on the market. For example, in terms of mushroom propagation efficiency, 1 bag of banana leaf stem mushroom spawns is the same price as a bag of mushroom spawns on the market (about 4 thousand VND/bag) and 1 banana tree can grow between 25 to 30 bags of mushroom spawns, bringing a profit of about 120 - 150 thousand VND.

In addition, the method makes use of banana leaves to help reduce investment costs and increase profits for mushroom growers, helping create a value chain in agriculture and creating jobs for peopl, contributing to local social security. In particular, collecting banana leaf stems after harvest helps take advantage of by-products in the field, contributing to minimizing environmental pollution.

“The group's participation in the Dong Nai Province Technical Innovation Contest aims to spread the new method to many farmers. Currently, Hung Loc Agricultural Research Center has created conditions to open classes on breeding and cultivating mushrooms for farmers who want to come and learn at a very low cost so that they can approach new techniques" - Ms. My shared.

In addition to propagating straw mushrooms on banana leaf stems, Ms. My's group is currently researching many other types of mushrooms (edible mushrooms and medicinal mushrooms) based on locally available substrates and raw materials and will come up with various methods in the coming time to contribute to the development and diversity of Vietnamese mushroom products.