2003 Annual Report for SW01-017
Commercial Production of Tropical Mushrooms Grown Organically
Summary
We have been working with two tropical mushroom species, Pleurotus ostreatus sajor-caju and Volvariella volvacea. We have been concentrating on production of tropical mushrooms from coffee house waste and shredded paper. Inoculum from malt agar plates is being used to inoculate 500 g bags, which require 21 days of growth at ambient temperature before primordia are produced. We will be comparing production rates for bags of various sizes next. Some of the problems encountered include rodent pests and adequate fruiting chambers.
Volvariella spawn is being grown on grain spawn. Fruiting beds are being made out of dried banana leaves.
Objectives/Performance Targets
1. To develop and test a pilot method for commercial production of organically grown tropical mushrooms.
2. To offer open-house demonstrations and workshops in order to convey the available information to students, extensionists, and potential producers.
Accomplishments/Milestones
Future work
We will also be trying to grow the medicinal fungus Ganoderma lucidum. In the last part of this project, we will hold a workshop and invite the public to share the available knowledge.
Accomplishments
During this report period we have started to recover from the devastating damages of two storms a year ago. Plus we had to replace our research assistant and train a new person. Our mushroom cultures are being kept up to date and we are making progress in our research again. We are comparing production methods for Pleurotus and Volvariella at this time.