EVALUATION OF AGRO-WASTES FOR THE CULTIVATION OF PLEUROTUS SAJOR- CAJU

In the Faizabad region, where a wide range of agro-wastes are discarded after harvesting of crop, six abundantly available wastes, viz.,  Brassica stem (BS), Maize cob (MC), Lentil straw (LS), Paddy straw (PS), Rice husk (RH) and Sugarcane leaves (SL) were tested against the commercially utilized substrate Wheat straw (WS) to determine the most effective alternative substrate for the production of edible mushroom Pleurotus sajor-caju (Fr.) Singer. Among the substrates, sugarcane leaves, paddy straw and rice husk were collected from village Takpura. Lentil straw and Brassica stem was collected from village Nandapur while wheat straw was purchased from local market of Ayodhya, which was later treated as control. The big sized substrates (sugarcane leaves, maize cob, Brassica stem, paddy and lentil straw) were chopped into 1-2 cm of small pieces. Later all the substrates were washed separately in fresh water and then pasteurized in to the solution of Formaldehyde (500 ppm) and Bavistin (75 ppm) for 18 hours. The beds were then prepared by layer spawning. These were incubated in the cultivation room at 22-30°C temperature for spawn run. When mycelia had completely covered the beds, the polythene covering were turned off and relative humidity was maintained between 85-95 per cent with the help of humidifier. The time for spawn run and primordial initiation were recorded for each treatment. The biological efficiency of mushroom was worked out as percentage yield of fresh mushroom in relation to dry weight of the substrate. Completely Randomized Design (CRD) was employed for the experiment. All the data were analyzed statistically. The critical difference (CD) was worked out at five per cent probability level.

The data obtained during the study is presented in Table.

* Average of three replicate

Among the substrate tested, paddy straw  gave highest yield and biological efficiency (500gm, 100%) from three flushes. Due to economic factor, it was considered as a best substrate for the cultivation of Pleurotus spp. in Faizabad region.

Cited this as: Siddhant, Ram Kumar, Ruchira Singh and D. C. Shukla (2006): Evaluation of Agro-wastes for the cultivation of Pleurotus sajor-caju. Journal of Basic and Applied Mycology. 5(I&II):73-74.