Agri Kultuur Julie / July 2014 | Page 44

Photo: www.dkfloriculture.in They are individually picked with an upward, twisting pull after which the lower part of the stem is cut off. The mushrooms are graded as they are picked and placed directly into the marketing containers. Brown mushrooms are harvested as closed buttons and sold as Portobellinis or they are harvested as big open mushrooms sold as Portobellos. Mushrooms should be handled with utmost care as they are easily bruised. They should be cooled as soon as possible after harvest, transported in cooled trucks and displayed on refrigerated shelves. Sources: The information above has been extracted and edited, with due acknowledgement, from http://www.mushroominfo.co.za http://www.nda.agric.za/docs/Brochures/prodGuideMushrooms