Successful cultivation of red reishi medicinal mushrooms

Red Ganoderma lucidum medicinal mushroom is not a popular crop in Quang Tri province, but some experimental models of concentrated cultivation have shown high economic value and efficiency. A typical example is the red Ganoderma lucidum growing facility of Mr. Tran Van Linh's household in Huynh Thuong village, Vinh Son commune, Vinh Linh district.

Mr. Tran Van Linh is packaging red lingzhi mushrooms - Photo: NT

After more than 3 years of learning from many places about the techniques and experiences of growing red reishi medicinal mushrooms and initially applying and planting them in small quantities, in 2010, Mr. Tran Van Linh gradually expanded the scale of his mushroom growing facility to 9,000 m2. From raw materials, imported varieties to infrastructure, equipment for mushroom production and processing, all were invested and guaranteed by Mr. Linh.

Regarding the production process, the main raw material is sawdust purchased directly on site. After processing, it will be bagged, sterilized, then inoculated with grade 2 red reishi mushroom seeds and mycelium. After nearly 4 months of care, fresh mushrooms will be harvested. Fresh mushrooms will continue to be dried and packaged to produce finished products.

Talking about his experience growing red reishi mushrooms, Mr. Linh said: “Growing this type of medicinal mushroom is more difficult than growing mushrooms used as common food such as oyster mushrooms, straw mushrooms, chicken thigh mushrooms, button mushrooms... First of all, it requires a relatively large amount of capital, like my family's facility has invested nearly 2 billion VND to build a mushroom nursery and growing area.

In addition, it is necessary to pay attention to the care techniques, to create an airy, clean environment, and to maintain the most suitable temperature so that the mushrooms can grow stably. The time from planting to harvesting of reishi mushrooms is 2-3 times longer than other types of mushrooms, but in return, the selling price of red reishi medicinal mushrooms is 20-30 times higher, sometimes up to 40 times higher than that of regular mushrooms. More importantly, the output market of the product is stable due to the increasing demand of customers for using red reishi mushrooms for the purpose of protecting and enhancing health.

Up to now, each year Mr. Linh's family imports about 200 tons of raw materials, producing 300 kg of dried red lingzhi mushrooms. The product has been evaluated by the Department of Science and Technology of Quang Tri province in terms of weight and quality standards, and at the same time supports partial consumption. In addition, Mr. Linh exports mushrooms to agents in many provinces and cities such as Hue, Da Nang, Binh Duong...

With a retail price of 1 million VND/kg of dried lingzhi mushrooms, the model earns about 300 million VND in revenue each year, deducting expenses for an income of more than 100 million VND. Mr. Linh's mushroom production facility also contributes to creating regular jobs for 5 workers. From the effectiveness of the model, in the near future, Mr. Linh plans to expand and invest more in the processing and production area to increase output as well as quality, increasingly meeting the market's demand for red lingzhi mushroom products.

Vice Chairman of Vinh Son Commune People's Committee Ho Ngoc Quyet added: "The red lingzhi medicinal mushroom of Mr. Tran Van Linh's household was selected by Vinh Son Commune People's Committee as a typical product in the local production chain.

In April 2024, he was supported with funding to certify production in accordance with the requirements of national standards on good agricultural practices in the field of cultivation according to VietGAP. Notably, red reishi mushrooms have also been recognized as one of the 14 typical rural industrial products of Vinh Linh district in 2024.

Nguyen Trang

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