Training the Heavens

Chapter 206 Mushroom Cultivation
"Can mushrooms be grown?" Li Xiuzhi asked in surprise.

"Yellow mushrooms are not good, but some mushrooms are still good. These mushrooms may not be as expensive as yellow mushrooms, but as long as they are grown well, you can make a lot of money." Xu Lingjun said.

Because the Qilian Mountain yellow mushroom has special requirements for the production environment and can only grow in specific grasslands, it has not been artificially cultivated until later generations. However, Xu Lingjun has seen too many cultivation techniques for other mushrooms.

When he was working in the central government agencies, he also undertook poverty alleviation tasks. In order to find a way out of poverty for his point-to-point poverty alleviation targets, Xu Lingjun read a lot of information and visited many mushroom breeding bases.

Now that these techniques are clearly memorized in my mind, it's just right to use them now. "Let's go to town together tomorrow and see if we can buy some materials. If we can, we can try growing mushrooms at home."

According to later information, this place is very suitable for growing shiitake mushrooms, red pine mushrooms and morels. Mushroom cultivation requires the use of mushroom mycelium and planting substrate. The planting substrate is easier to get, and Xu Lingjun can do it himself, but the mycelium has to be bought specially. Xu Lingjun plans to go and see what kind of mycelium can be bought.

"Just go, right?" Li Xiuzhi was a little hesitant. She was only nineteen years old and liked the hustle and bustle. Of course, she wanted to go to the town for a stroll, but going to the town would require spending money, and she was reluctant to do so.

Xu Lingjun understood her concerns and comforted her, "It's okay. You've been at the ranch for so long and haven't been out for a walk. This time we have time, so I'll take you to the town first. If there's nothing in town, we can go to the county."

This time Li Xiuzhi agreed. The two of them packed up, changed into new clothes, and went to the town early the next morning. The town here was very different from Sichuan, and Li Xiuzhi found everything new and interesting.

Xu Lingjun introduced them to her patiently, and the smile on Li Xiuzhi's face never stopped. She felt that she was so happy.

Unfortunately, there was no mycelium in the town, so I went to the county the next day.

In the 1970s, a large number of agricultural schools such as "Agricultural Universities" and "Agricultural Middle Schools" were established across the country. These schools were responsible for teaching farmers knowledge about agricultural production management, planting, breeding and other aspects.

As for the level, it is somewhat uneven, but it is definitely better than what farmers have to figure out on their own. If you listen carefully, it will still help to increase agricultural and animal husbandry output.

Xu Lingjun was lucky this time. There was a teacher in the county agricultural school who taught mushroom cultivation technology. His name was Li Binggui and he had mycelium. So this trip was not in vain.

Li Binggui was very curious when he saw Xu Lingjun. "I've been taking mushroom cultivation classes at the agricultural school for two years. Few people attended the classes, and even fewer dared to grow mushrooms. Why did you want to grow mushrooms?"

"I've read some knowledge about this in books before, and now I want to give it a try." Xu Lingjun replied.

He actually understands the ideas of local farmers. Mushroom cultivation has now sprouted all over the country, but this industry requires certain skills and has certain requirements on the comprehensive quality of the growers. At least they have to be willing to learn and not be too stupid.

The most important thing is to have a certain economic foundation, because purchasing mycelium and building mushroom houses cost money, and the local people have a relatively weak economic foundation and are generally reluctant to spend this money on wool.

"Oh, you've been educated!" Li Binggui understood. "Reading is good. It broadens your horizons. You'll know that mushrooms can really be grown. I have shiitake and porcini mushrooms here. Which one do you want?"

"Porcini mushrooms, huh? By the way, is there somewhere in the county to harvest them after they're grown?" Xu Lingjun asked. No matter what agricultural project you're pursuing, you can't just sit there and do it in a daze. The first thing you need to solve is a market. Without a market, you absolutely can't proceed. We're still in the pre-market economy era, and most households are reluctant to spend money on mushrooms. If this problem isn't solved, Xu Lingjun will have to find another project.

Li Binggui patted his chest and assured, "Don't worry about this. The county local product company will buy it. Our county originally produces porcini mushrooms. They buy them every year and sell them to other places. People in big cities are scrambling to get them. I can give you a guarantee today. As long as you can grow them, you can sell as many as you can. If you can't sell them, come to me!"

I guess he has been lonely for a long time. He has been busy for more than two years and has not seen anyone growing mushrooms. Now someone has finally come. Even if he has never attended his class, the teacher is willing to chat with him for a while.

"Okay, I'll buy the porcini mushroom strains!" Xu Lingjun made the decision immediately. Porcini mushrooms are much more expensive than shiitake mushrooms. Since he wants to make money, he might as well buy the expensive ones.

Li Binggui was very responsible and didn't immediately sell him the mushroom strains. "Growing mushrooms costs a lot of money. I have to test you first to make sure you really know how to grow them before I sell them to you."

"You really care about us." Xu Lingjun couldn't help but admire him. He praised him a few times and then answered seriously.

After listening to this, Li Binggui sometimes nodded and smiled, and sometimes frowned to correct Xu Lingjun's mistake. In fact, Xu Lingjun's answer was not wrong, but the mushroom cultivation technology would be improved in the future, while the teacher was still learning the old method.

Xu Lingjun did not insist, because some advanced methods may not be useful now. After all, many conditions are not yet met. When he really starts planting, he will refer to both methods at the same time.

After asking the last question, Li Binggui smiled with satisfaction. "Not bad, not bad. Although your technique is a little flawed, as long as you remember the points I just mentioned, you can grow mushrooms."

"I'll give you a little mycelium first. Once it's grown, I'll give you more. This is your first time growing mushrooms, so don't spread it too far at once, or you might end up with something that doesn't work out in the future."

"Thank you, Teacher Li. I will come to tell you the good news when the mushroom harvest is good." Xu Lingjun kept this person in mind. With such a responsible attitude and a certain professional foundation, he will definitely be of great help when he really does things in the future.

"Okay, I'll be waiting!" Li Binggui sent Xu Lingjun and his wife all the way to the school gate. Before leaving, he reminded them again, "I'm usually either in the countryside or at school. If you encounter any problems, come to me immediately and I'll go to your house to help you solve them."

"Yeah, I remember it." Xu Lingjun nodded repeatedly. This is what a good student of a teacher should be.

Back at the ranch, Xu Lingjun called Guo Chenzi and the others over again and asked Xiuzhi to cook for them. Then, at the table, he talked about his plan to grow mushrooms. "Everything else is easy, but building a mushroom house will take some effort. I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you again."

"Oh, you can also grow mushrooms? Is that possible?" Guo Chenzi was either unwilling to help or worried that Xu Lingjun would lose money.

"I think it will work. It's only been two and a half months since I used Lao Xu's method, and my chicks have started laying eggs."

(End of this chapter)