GROWING GOURMET - Anto2ni.it

306 GROWTH PARAMETERS
sawdust. Pasteurized straw cultivation is comparatively
less productive unless inoculated
with equal quantities of sawdust and grain
spawn. In other words, every ton of wheat
straw (2000 lbs. dry weight) should simultaneously
receive 100 lbs. of grain spawn (wet
weight) and 100 lbs. of sawdust spawn (wet
weight). This combination spawning method
gives rise to large specimens on wheat straw.
Suggested Agar Culture Media: MYPA or
PDYA.
1st, 2nd and 3rd Generation Spawn Media:
Rye, wheat, sorghum, milo, or millet.
Substrates for Fruiting: Most hardwoods,
wheat straw, and cottonseed hulls support
fruitings. This mushroom is not as adaptive as
P. pulmonariuS and P. ostreatus to a broad
range of substrates. Nevertheless, many materials
can be used. I have been pleased with its
performance on recycled, re-sterilized waste
Shiitake substrate. However, I would not recommend
this approach for commercial
purposes unless the preferred wood type or alternative substrate materials were exceedingly scarce or
cost-prohibitive. If cultivating this mushroom on wheat straw, the addition of 5-10% cottonseed meal
reportedly has the greatest effect in enhancing yield. (Upadhyay &Vijay, 1991)
Recommended Containers for Fruiting: Trays, plastic bags, columns, or bottles.
Yield Potentials: 1 lb. of mushrooms per 5 lbs. of sterilized sawdust/chips/bran. Wheat straw
fruitings, from my experience, have tallied approximately 1/2 of that from enriched sawdust. The
stage at which the mushrooms are picked significantly affects yield efficiencies.
Harvest Hints: This mushroom can become quite large if the substrate has a sufficient nutritional
base. The stage at which the fruitbody should be picked will depend largely upon the strain and the
cultivator's preference. When the cap margins are inrolled or deeply incurved, the mushrooms are Figure 277. LaDena Stamets about to harvest P.
eiyngü from column of pasteurized wheat straw.
at
an adolescent stage and are likely to grow much larger. I prefer harvesting the mushrooms just before
the cap margin flattens.
Form of Product Sold toMarket: Wild mushrooms are sold in markets in Spain, Morocco and other
southern European countries.
Nutritional Content: Not known although expected to be similar to or exceeding P ostreatus.
Medicinal Properties: Not known.
PDF compression, OCR, web-optimization with CVISION's PdfCompressor