Sustainability Assessment of a Qingyuan Mushroom Culture System Based on Emergy

Abstract

The Qingyuan mushroom culture system (QMCS) in Zhejiang Province has been recognized as the source of the world’s first artificial cultivation of mushrooms with a history of more than 800 years. The system embodies the farming wisdom of the local people who have adapted themselves to and utilized nature and has integrated the traditional bark hacking method with multiple modern patterns for mushroom cultivation based on artificial microbial strains. We have investigated the input–output operation of farmers and assessed and analyzed emergy indicators in a bid to reflect and compare their economic and ecological benefits, as well as their sustainable development by analyzing the three typical mushroom cultivation patterns. The cost-benefit analysis of the three patterns shows that the sawdust medium-cultivated method (SMCM) is characterized by dominance in both net income without labor cost and labor productivity; while the evaluation based on emergy indicators has proven that each has its own advantages and disadvantages in terms of ecological and economic benefits and sustainable development. Among them, the bark hacking method (BHM) features the highest utilization rates of local and renewable resources, the smallest damage to the environment, the lowest production efficiency, and the highest exchange efficiency, but the sawdust medium-cultivated method is just the opposite, and the log-cultivated method (LCM) is the most favorable one for sustainable development. As its agricultural heritage, the QMCS’ core of dynamic protection and adaptive management lies in enhancing the sustainable development of its agricultural production methods. It is recommended that the three patterns be improved by targeting their respective shortcomings and at the same time, integrate their advantages to explore a new sustainable development pattern for mushroom cultivation.

Data Visualization for Improved Mushroom Cultivation: A User-Friendly Approach

“…These measurements offer crucial information about the moisture content within the cultivation houses. Maintaining the appropriate humidity level is essential for the growth and development of mushrooms, as it directly affects their ability to absorb nutrients and prevents the formation of mold or other undesirable fungal growth [9,[11][12][13].…”

“…Within the realm of mushroom cultivation, maintaining an ideal temperature range spanning from 20 to 30°C, alongside a relative humidity (RH) range of 60 to 90% [1,7,18,26], assumes paramount importance. Consequently, geographical locations endowed with high-altitude attributes have emerged as favourable settings for mushroom cultivation owing to their inherent advantages of appropriate humidity levels and ambient air temperature [9,[11][12][13].…”

The Importance of Spiritual Ecology in the Qingyuan Forest Mushroom Co-Cultivation System

“…The natural and humanistic environment on which spiritual ecology depends have undergone drastic changes. The mushroom-production technique of the Qingyuan people has been upgraded from the original Duohua method to the log-cutting, substitute-cultivation, and intelligent-integration methods [45]. The progress of civilization with the advancement of science has transcended the stage of folk beliefs of the Age of Ignorance.…”

Sustainability of Regional Agroecological Economic System Based on Emergy Theory: A Case Study of Anhui Province, China

“…They analyzed the correlation between various production factors and eco-efficiency through quantitative evaluation to improve eco-efficiency and production effectiveness in industrial production. In the evaluation of agricultural production systems, international scholars now mainly focus on the sustainability evaluation of individual crop production systems, such as cucumber production, rapeseed production, and mushroom production [22][23][24]. Domestic scholars have focused more on regional ecological economic system emergy analysis.…”