Mushroom Culture

Spore collection, spore germination and isolation of mycelium or tissue cloning. 

Preparation of inoculum by the expansion of mycelial mass on enriched agar media and then on grain. Implantation of grain spawn into composted and uncomposted substrates or the use of grain as a fruiting substrate. 

Having a basic understanding of the mushroom life cycle greatly aids the learning of techniques essential to cultivation. 

Mushrooms are the fruit of the mushroom plant, the mycelium. A mycelium is a vast network of interconnected cells that permeates the ground and lives perenially. This resident mycelium only produces fruitbodies. what are commonly called mushrooms, under optimum conditions of temperature, humidity and nutrition. For the most part, the parent mycelium has but one recourse for insuring the survival of the species to release enormous numbers of spores. This is accomplished through the generation of mushrooms. 

The cap is supported by a pillar-like stem That elevates the gills above ground where the spores can be carried off by the slightest wind currents. Clearly, every part of the mushroom fruitbody is designed to give the spores the best opportunity to mature and spread in an external environment that is often harsh and drastically fluctuating. 

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Pfefferle W, Anke H, Bross M, Steglich W (1990) Inhibition of Solubilized Chitin Synthase by Chlorinated Aromatic Compounds Isolated from Mushroom Cultures. Agric Biol Chem 54 1381... 

Mushroom culture. I. Metznei Ralph. II. Darling, Diane. III. Title. BF209.H36T46 2006 154.4—dc22... 

Peele, S.L. 1985. CamotiUos created by the mushroom Psilocybe tampanemis may be useful in psychotherapy and treatment of asthma The Mushroom Culture, Journal of Mushroom CuMvation 6 3—4. 

There are five primary sources of contamination in mushroom culture work ... 

A mushroom culture can be started in one of two ways. Most growers start a culture from spores. The advantage of using spores is that they are viable for weeks to months after the mushroom has decomposed. The other way of obtaining a culture is to cut a piece of interior tissue from a live specimen, in effect a clone. Tissue cultures must be taken within a day or two from the time the mushroom has been picked, after which a healthy clone becomes increasingly difficult to establish. 

If failure greets one s first attempts at mushroom culture, do not despair. Only through practice and experience will sterile culture techniques become fluent. 

Agar culture is but one in a series of steps in the cultivation of mushrooms. By itself, agar media is impractical for the production of mushrooms. The advantage of its use in mushroom culture is that mycelial mass can be rapidly multiplied using the smallest fragments of tissue. Since contaminants can be readily observed on the flat Two dimensional surface of a media filled petri dish, it is "fairiy easy to recognize and maintain pure cuitures. 

In a dish That is largely covered with a cottony mycelia, a fan of strandy myceiia would be called a rhizomorphic sector, and vice versa. Sectors are common in mushroom culture and although little is known as to their cause or function, it is clear that genetics, nutrition and age of the mycelium play important roles. 

Contaminated jars should be sterilized on a weekly basis. Do not dig out moldy cultures unless they have been autoclaved or if the identity of the contaminant in question is known to be benign. Several contaminants in mushroom culture are pathogenic to humans, causing a variety of skin diseases and respiratory ailments. (See Chapter XIII on the contmaninants of mushroom culture). Autoclave contaminated jars for 30 minutes at 1 5 psi and clean soon after. Many autoclaved jars, once contaminated, re-contaminate within only a few days if their contents have been not discarded. 

Fresh air filters are an important part of the ventilation system and contribute to the health ot, crop. Their function is to screen out atmospheric dust particles like smoke, silica, soot and decay biological matter. Atmospheric dust also contains spores, bacteria and plant pollen, some of which, are detrimental to mushroom culture. Furthermore, spores and microorganisms originating within" f the cropping room can also be spread by air movement. To counteract this clanger, some mush- ... 

Since contamination at any phase of cultivation occurs for specific reasons, the contaminants can be the cultivator s most valuable guide for teaching one what NOT to do. If the problem causing organism is identified and if the recommended measures of control are carefully followed, a conscientious cultivator will avoid those conditions predisposing to that one competitor and, incidentally, many others. In effect, skill in mushroom culture is tantamount to skill in contamination control. 

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