A Complete Guide to Shiitake Mushroom: Biology, Cultivation and Benefits

Shiitake mushrooms (Lentinus edodes), also known as fragrant mushrooms, are classified under the phylum Basidiomycota, order Agaricales, family Pleurotaceae, and genus Lentinus. Among edible fungi, shiitake mushrooms are the second most popular variety in the international market, after button mushrooms. Shiitake mushrooms are a well-known dual-purpose (food and medicinal) fungus, known for their rich aroma and high nutritional value, containing 19 amino acids, 7 of which are essential for the human body. China has a long history of shiitake mushroom cultivation and is considered its birthplace. Inspired by the cultivation of silver ear fungus, southern China pioneered shiitake mushroom cultivation techniques, primarily using methods such as greenhouse inclined (vertical) cultivation, high-shed tiered mechanical cultivation, and cold-shed ground cultivation. Shiitake mushrooms have high economic value. Taking 16cm×60cm shiitake mushroom tiered cultivation as an example: the cost per stick is 3 yuan, the output value is 5-7 yuan, and 30,000 mushrooms can be grown per mu (approximately 0.067 hectares), resulting in a total cost of 90,000 yuan and a total output value of 150,000-210,000 yuan, indicating a broad development prospect. I. Morphological Characteristics
Shiitake mushrooms are wood-rotting fungi, composed of two basic forms: mycelium and fruiting bodies. The mycelium is white, cottony, robust, and grows uniformly. The fruiting bodies are umbrella-shaped, mostly solitary. The cap is 5-10 cm in diameter, round or disc-shaped, light brown or dark brown in color, with scales on the surface and a grayish-white patterned edge. The flesh is white, and the gills and stipe are white, 3-6 cm long, located in the center or off-center of the cap, solid and fibrous. The spores are nearly elliptical, white, and smooth.

II. Life Cycle
Shiitake mushrooms are tetrapolar heterothallic fungi. Their life cycle begins with spore germination, followed by mating of monokaryotic hyphae to form dikaryotic hyphae, mycelial growth and fruiting body formation, ending with the production of a new generation of spores. This constitutes one generation of a shiitake mushroom. The specific life cycle consists of the following 7 steps:
1. Basidiospore germination, producing four different mating types of monokaryotic hyphae.

2. Two compatible monokaryotic hyphae fused, undergoing plasmogamy to form clamp-connected dikaryotic hyphae, which then proliferate continuously.

3. When the dikaryotic hyphae develop to a certain physiological stage, they intertwine under suitable conditions to form fruiting body primordia, which continuously differentiate into complete fruiting bodies.

4. On the gills, the terminal cells of the dikaryotic hyphae develop into basidia, which are arranged to form the hymenium.

5. In the mature basidia, the two unit nuclei fuse (nucleogamy) to form a binary nucleus.

6. The binary nucleus in the basidia undergoes two maturation divisions, including one meiotic division, ultimately forming four basidiospores.

7. After the basidiospores are ejected, a mitotic division occurs during germination, indicating the restart of the life cycle.