MAKING MUSHROOM BEDS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24254, 23 March 1940, Page 5

MAKING MUSHROOM BEDS

PURE CULTURE SPAWN NEW VERSUS OLD METHODS There was a clay when mushroom culture was looked upon by amateurs as something very much in'the nature of i gamble. It is true that, even now, failures are not uncommon, but, thanks to scientific research, it is only necessary to provide the right conditions to make quite certain of a reasonable crop. Largely this is due to the introduction of sterilised or pure culture spawn. With the old spawn bricks it was impossible to tell what type or quality of mushroom would be obtained. They were also luble to contain such undesirable matters as weed seeds, bacteria, and spores of other fungi. In the case of sterilised spawn the mushroom spores are made to germinate under perfectly aseptic conditions. Mushrooms perfectly true to type can be grown, for the spores in the first place are tcken only from selected mushrooms, and the medium in which (he mycelium is run is absolutely free from extraneous matters that can contaminate it in any way. It is obvious that not only will quality be superior with pure culture spawn, results must also be much more certain, for, with mycelium in a sterilised medium there is nothing but faulty storage, such as exposure to frost or great heat, which can destroy it. The Manure Problem There is one great problem still, of course, and that is obtaining supplies of suitable manure, but even this now looks likely to be overcome, for there are on the market preparations which can be used to convert plain strrw into ideal compost. The great point is, of course, that mushrooms require heat in order to induce growth, and it is for this reason that horse manure is the only one suitable. Cow or pig manure is cold and wet. and, even with stable dung, it is essential to see that it comes from stables where the horses sre bedded in straw. What is more, it must be perfectly fresh.