GROWING GOURMET - Anto2ni.it

12
THE ROLE OF MUSHROOMS IN NATURE
commonly cultivated mushroont* Another
example is Stropharia ambigua which invades
outdoor mushroom beds after wood
chips have been first decomposed by a primary
saprophyte.
Tertiary Decomposers: An amorphous
group, the fungi represented by this group are
typically soil dwellers. They survive in habitats
that are years in the making from the
activity of the primary and secondary decomposers.
Fungi existing in these reduced
substrates are remarkable in that the habitat
appears inhospitable for most other mushrooms.
A classic example of a tertiary
decomposer is Aleuria aurantia, the Orange
Peel Mushroom. This complex group of fungi
often pose unique problems to would-be cultivators.
Panaeolus subbalteatus is yet another
example. Although one can grow it on
composted substrates, this mushroom has the
reputation of growing prolifically in the discarded
compost from Button mushroom
farms. Other tertiary decomposers include
species of Conocybe, Agrocybe, and
some Agaricus species.
The floor of a forest is constantly being replenished
by new organic matter. Primary,
secondary and tertiary decomposers can all
occupy the same location. In the complex environment
of the forest floor, a "habitat" can
actually be described as the overlaying of several
habitats mixed into one. And, over time, as
each habitat is being transformed, successions
of mushrooms occur. This model becomes infinitely
complex when taking into account the
* The cultivation of this mushroom is covered in detail in The
Mushroom Cultivator (1983) by Stamets & Chilton.
inter-relationships of not only the fungi to one
another, but the fungi to other micro-organisms
(yeasts, bacteria, protozoa), plants, insects
and mammals.
Primary and secondary decomposers afford
the most opportunities for cultivation. To
select the best species for cultivation, several
variables must be carefully matched.
Climate, available raw materials, and the
mushroom strains all must interplay for cultivation
to result in success. Native species are
the best choices when you are designing outdoor
mushroom landscapes.
Temperature-tolerant varieties of mushrooms
are more forgiving and easier to grow
than those which thrive within finite temperature
limits. In warmer climates, moisture is
typically more rapidly lost, narrowing the opportunity
for mushroom growth. Obviously,
growing mushrooms outdoors in a desert climate
is more difficult than growing
mushrooms in moist environments where
they naturally abound. Clearly, the site selection
of the mushroom habitat is crucial. The
more exposed a habitat is to direct mid-day
sun, the more difficult it is for mushrooms to
flourish.
Many mushrooms actually benefit from indirect
sunlight, especially in the northern
latitudes. Pacific Northwest mushroom hunters
have long noted that mushrooms grow
most prolifically, not in the darkest depths of a
woodlands, but in environments where shade
and dappled sunlight are combined. Sensitivity
studies to light have established that
various species differ in their optimal response
to wave-bands of sunlight. Nevertheless, few
mushrooms enjoy prolonged exposure to direct
sunlight.
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