Updated: 3 October 2026
For a first crop, oyster (dhingri) is the usual choice. It grows on straw that is only pasteurised, at 20 to 30 degrees C, and needs no cooling plant. Button mushroom has the best-known market, but it needs compost, casing soil and 14 to 16 degrees C for fruiting, so in north India it is a winter crop unless the farm can pay for cooling. Milky suits hot places. Paddy straw mushroom is the fastest, but it spoils within hours.
The figures below come from ICAR-DMR Solan, TNAU and the National Horticulture Board. Short names used in the tables: DMR 2020 (ICAR-DMR strain and technology book), DMR PSM and DMR PHT (ICAR-DMR bulletins on paddy straw mushroom and post-harvest), TNAU (Crop Production Guide) and NHB 2005 (model project, November 2005). Where sources disagree, both numbers are shown. For growing steps see the mushroom farming guide.
Temperature, humidity and season
| Type | Spawn run / fruiting temperature | Humidity | When to grow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Button (Agaricus bisporus) | 24 to 26 C / 14 to 16 C bed temperature (DMR 2020, strain NBS-1). NHB 2005: 20 to 28 C / 12 to 18 C | Fruiting room 85 to 90% (DMR 2020) | Winter months in the north-west plains; 8 to 10 months a year on the hills (NHB 2005) |
| Oyster (dhingri, Pleurotus) | P. florida 22 to 28 / 15 to 22 C; P. sajor-caju 25 to 30 / 18 to 26 C; P. ostreatus bags at 14 to 20 C (DMR 2020). TNAU: 25 to 30 C | 80 to 85% (TNAU) | florida: winter, north and central states; sajor-caju: March to April in plains of north, east and centre; ostreatus: November to February in lower hills and north and east plains (DMR 2020). NHB 2005: hills above 900 m March/April to September/October, lower areas September/October to March/April |
| Milky (Calocybe indica) | 25 to 30 C / 28 to 34 C bag temperature (DMR 2020). TNAU: 30 to 35 C | 80 to 90% fruiting (DMR 2020); 85 to 90% (TNAU) | TNAU lists it with button, oyster and paddy straw as suited to round-the-year growing in India. The sources give no month-wise window for milky |
| Paddy straw (Volvariella) | 30 to 35 C / 28 to 32 C bed temperature (DMR 2020) | 90 to 95% spawn run; 85 to 90% fruiting (DMR 2020) | Warm months; DMR PSM calls it the "warm mushroom" |
| Shiitake | 23 to 25 C / 20 to 22 C (DMR 2020) | 75 to 80% / 80 to 85% (DMR 2020) | DMR gives temperatures, not months. These temperatures mean hills, winter or a cooled room |
Substrate, cycle, yield and shelf life
| Type | Substrate | Cycle | Yield | Shelf life of fresh mushroom |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Button | Composted wheat or paddy straw with chicken manure, bran, urea and gypsum (DMR FAQ), then soil casing | Spawn run 12 to 13 days; first pick 13 to 14 days after casing (DMR 2020) | 18 to 23 kg per 100 kg compost in environment-controlled units (DMR 2020: NBS-1 18 to 21, NBS-5 20 to 23) | 14 to 20 days at 1 C, about 10 days at 6 C, 2 to 3 days at 20 C (DMR PHT) |
| Oyster | Wheat or paddy straw, pasteurised, no composting | TNAU: 40 to 45 days a crop, three pickings 5 to 7 days apart. NHB 2005: 45 to 60 days | Biological efficiency 40 to 90% by species (DMR 2020); 100 to 150% (TNAU); over 500 kg per tonne dry straw (NHB 2005) | 1 to 2 weeks at 0 to 5 C (NHB 2005). Shelf life at room temperature was not stated. Dried to 2 to 4% moisture it keeps 3 to 4 months sealed (NHB 2005) |
| Milky | Straw, with a 3 to 4 cm soil casing (DMR 2020) | TNAU: 45 to 50 days. DMR Milky-985: first harvest at 33 days | 74 to 82 kg per 100 kg dry straw for Milky-334 and 55 for Milky-985 (DMR 2020); 150 to 160% (TNAU) | 3 to 5 days if spoilage is controlled (DMR PHT) |
| Paddy straw | Paddy straw or cotton waste with 1% lime (DMR PSM) | 4 to 5 weeks in all; first harvest 9 to 10 days after spawning; first flush gives 70 to 90% of the crop (DMR PSM) | The sources give no per-100 kg figure | A few hours at room temperature (DMR PHT) |
| Shiitake | Sawdust (DMR 2020) | Not stated | 31 to 40 kg per 100 kg dry sawdust for Shiitake-38; strains range 22 to 52 (DMR 2020) | Not stated |
Which type for which climate
- Hot plains and the south: oyster (sajor-caju, pink), milky and paddy straw, all grown without cooling.
- North and east plains: oyster florida and ostreatus in winter, sajor-caju and pink in March to April, and seasonal button in the cold months.
- Hills: button for 8 to 10 months (NHB 2005); shiitake needs the same cool 20 to 22 C range.
Which type for which budget
- Lowest: oyster in a thatch or polythene shed. TNAU costs a 10 kg a day unit at ₹37,000 for capital; milky at ₹87,000. See project cost.
- Medium: seasonal button needs a compost yard and a pasteurising tunnel.
- Highest: year-round button. ICAR-DMR's outline for a 200 tonne a year unit has 8 cropping rooms and 60 TR of air conditioning, which is far beyond a household.
Reading the yield numbers
Biological efficiency (BE) of 100% means 1 kg of fresh mushroom from 1 kg of dry substrate. The oyster and milky figures above differ widely between ICAR-DMR and TNAU, and the sources do not say whether the basis is wet or dry straw, so do not average them. Plan on the lower figure and let your own first batches decide. Button yield is per 100 kg of finished compost, which cannot be compared with BE on straw.
In the 2017 production breakdown, button was 73% of Indian output, oyster 16%, paddy straw 7% and milky 3%. Training and subsidy are on the training and subsidy page; the main page is mushroom farming.
Sources
- ICAR-DMR Solan, Technologies Developed by ICAR-DMR for Commercial Use (2020 book)
- ICAR-DMR Solan, Cultivation Technology of Paddy Straw Mushroom (bulletin)
- ICAR-DMR Solan, Post Harvest Technology of Mushroom (bulletin)
- ICAR-DMR Solan, FAQs
- TNAU Crop Production Guide, Mushroom Cultivation
- National Horticulture Board, model bankable project on oyster mushroom (AFC, November 2005)
- National Horticulture Board, model bankable project on button mushroom (AFC, November 2005)
- ICAR-DMR Solan, rough estimate output for a 200 tonne a year button mushroom unit
- ICAR, Mushroom Research journal, Status of mushroom production in India