Oyester Mushroom growing technique

Oyester mushrooms can be cultivated in almost all areas in the country. Prefered temperature is around 25-28 degree celsius and relative humidity is 70-85% .Cultivation method is much simpler, requires less equipment, less space ...however it is recommended to practice all the steps carefully with a good attention to achieve best results.

You should know how to.......

1. Prepare raw materials.

2. Mix raw materials.(compost mixture)

3. Pack cmpost in bags.

4. Sterilize.

5. Inoculate spawn.

6. Incubate to spawn run.

7. Use crop house.

8. Induce flowering/ Initiate for mushroom production.

Start Mushroom cultivation in Sri Lanka

In Sri Lanka, beginners are generally adviced to start with oyster varieties on saw-dust medium. But, in my practical sessions I encourage farmers to start the same variety with paddy-straw medium too.

However, following cascade shows how to grow mushroom on saw-dust medium.

Materials:

saw-dust :20 kg

Rice bran :02 kg

Calsium carbonate :400g

Magnesium sulphate :40g

Powdered soya bean / Green gram :200g

or any grain powder mix

Poly propylene( 7" ,guage 200) :01 kg

PVC pipe( 3/4" diameter ,1/2 " height rings) :50-70

Cotton wool/ cotton waste :500g

Rubber bands( smaller ring size) :01 pkt

Papers( 3" x 3" squares) : 50-70

Candles : 04

Mushroom spawn packet :01

Saw-dust must be fresh, meshed, well-dried for two days ( rubber, mango, and soft woods are preferred)

Method :

1. Saw-dust if flattened on a cement floor.

2. Destribute rice bran, calsium carbonate, grain powder all over it.

3. Dissolve magnesium sulphate in a cup of water and sprinkle on it.

4. Mix all the above materials using hands/legs or showel.

5. Add water using a shower-like device and mix them thoruoghly until water equally destributed and adequate to the mixture.

6. Squeeze a hand-ful of mixture in order to check the water content.

7. When the mixture appears partly cracked on your hand mmmm... i.e enough water

Now it's time to pack and pack ......a laaazy job

First put your two fonger tips to the sealed corners of 13-14"long sealed poly propylene bags and invert the bag so that the bottom kept rounded.

Loosely fill mixture of saw-dust and then push downwards

Mushrooms cultivated in Sri Lanka

Two basic media are commonly used in mushroom cultivation in Sri Lanka for artificial cultivation.

1.Saw-dust medium

a). Oyester(American oyester/ Butan oyester ) : Pleurotus sp.

b). Abelone mushroom : Pleurotus sp.

c). Jews-ear mushroom : Auricularia sp.

2.Paddy-straw medium.

a). Paddy-straw mushroom : Volvariella volvacea

b). Milky mushroom

c). Button Mushroom : Agaricus bisporus

Both raw materials i.e saw-dust and paddy-straw are abundantly found in Sri Lanka as agricultural and industrial waste in almost allover the country. Also, climatic conditions are more compatible for mushroom cultivation but a careful selection of variety is required.

Sri Lanka is an island of small land area it shows significant changes in temperature and humidity levels in different regions of the country hence, it stands a good chance to grow many varieties within the country. However, farmers should be guided by any public/private sector organization engaged in agricultural sector to fulfil their spawn requirements and technical transfer.

Mushroom spawn Production

There are two alternative ways in mushroom spawn manufacturing. First one is based on spores produced by mushrooms on there own and the next method is based on "tissue culture " technique which is more potential on generating identical generation of one particular species.

Method 1: Spore technique

1.Place a Healthy mature bacidium of the required spc.. as the gills are facing downwards on a clean sterile paper, inside a laminar floor hood .

2. After 20-30 mins. Collect tiny dust-like spores from a sterile inoculating needle and transfer to a sterilized test tube/petri dish filled with distilled water i.e called spore suspension.

3. Mix the suspension with same needle and draw streaks on a pre-prepared PDA medium in a petri dish.

4. Allow 10-12 days of incubation period until it shows charectiristic mycelial growth.

Method 2 : Tissue culture technique

Mushroom spawn production in Sri Lanka is largely based on tisssue culture technique. In here particular tissues from a healthy, characteristic, fresh basidium (mushroom) is separated and artificially grown under controlled conditions in an artificial medium.

Method requires sterilized /autoclaved PDA medium poured in to petri-dishes and cooled atleast for two hours.

1. First, Wipe-off the surface of selected healthy mushroom/basidium with 70% alcohol using cotton wool.

2. Then, remove the unwanted parts of moshroom but keeping the stem-part of the mushroom.

3. Dissect the the basidium and select and separate a tissue from stem-gills intermediate zone of newly cut opened surface.

4. Place the tissue on medium in petri dish . Repeat the step until petri plate consist with around four sections of tissues.

5. Use a parafilm or a cellotape to set two petri dishes firmly well.

6. Place it for 7-14 days incubation until mycelium completely covers the surface of agar medium.