Friday, March 29, 2024
 
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Mushroom cultivation & their importance in increasing the lively-hood of the people




By Tarika Sharma




We have achieved food security by producing over 200 million tonnes of food grain. However, our struggle to achieve nutritional security is still on. In future, the ever-increasing population, depleting agricultural land, changes in environment, water shortage and need for quality food products at competitive rates are going to be important issues. To meet these challenges and to provide food and nutritional security to our people, it is important to diversify the agricultural activities in areas like horticulture. Indian diet is primarily based on cereals (wheat, rice and maize), which is deficient in protein. Mushrooms are one such component that not only impart diversification but also help in addressing the problems of quality food, health and environment related issues. Supplementation of mushroom recipe in Indian diet will bridge protein gap and improve the general health of socio-economically backward communities.



Though mushroom cultivation both in east and west started many centuries ago, yet its cultivation in India, is of recent origin. But now with passage of time the science of mushroom research and development in India, has expanded. It is clearly evident from the fact that the yield of mushroom has increased manifolds during the last four decades i.e from 2-3 kg/100kg compost in 1964-65 to 18-20 kg/100kg compost now.


Agaricus bisporus, popularly known as the white button mushroom has the widest acceptability in India and its present production level is estimated between 60,000 to 70,000 tonnes per annum. The second most popular mushroom species, dhingri, accounts for approximately 7200-8500 tonnes per annum, however, this quantity is very meagre, considering the huge market potential of this large and over populated country. In fact, in our country, there is need to convert the surplus agriculture waste (estimated to be over 18 crores tonnes) into nutritious food using simple and inexpensive methods. Cellulose, hemicelluloses and lignin constitute about 80 per cent of total dry weight of straws. Most edible fungi posess good cellulose and hemicellulytic enzymes system and some in addition are highly lignolytic. Proper understanding and identification of such system will definitely help in selection of mushroom strains that have an increased ability to bio convert more of the substrate into fruits bodies.




Area and Climate

Places where mushrooms are popularly grown are Tamil-Nadu, Orissa, Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and North-West and Eastern region of India. It is also paradoxical to note that India is largely a tropical country and we mainly cultivate temperate mushroom. The tropical and sub tropical mushrooms like oyster (Pleurotus spp.), paddy straw (Volvariella sp.), milky (Calocybe sp.), reishi (Ganoderma sp.), wood ear (Auricularia spp.), etc. are not cultivated on a larger scale. Majority of the farmers are cultivating mushrooms only during particular seasons. To cultivate different types of mushrooms based on different seasons and prevailing climate one should know the requirement of specific temperature and humidity of different edible mushrooms. Since mushrooms contain about 90% water it is desirable to grow them under a relative humidity of above 85-90%. The temperature requirements of some important mushrooms are given in Table 1.




Table 1. Temperature requirements of some important mushrooms


S.No. Scientific name of Mushroom Common name Temperature requirement
Spawn run Cropping

1. Agaricus bisporus White button mushroom 23-25 14-16

2. Agaricus bitorquis Summer white button mushroom 28-30 25

3. Auricularia sp. Black ear/ Wood ear mushroom 20-30
20-30
4. Lentinula edodes Shiitake mushroom 22-27 15-20

5. Pleurotus eryngii Kabul Dhingri 18-22 14-18

6. P. flabellatus Dhingri (flabellatus) 25-30 22-26

7. P. florida Dhingri (Florida) 25-30 18-22
8. P. sajor caju Dhingri 25-32 22-26
9. Volvariella volvacea Paddy straw/ Parali mushroom 32-34 28-32
10. Calocybe indica Milky/Dudhiya mushroom 25-30 30-35




Mushroom cultivation and its importance:

In India the mushroom cultivation is of mixed type i.e seasonal farming as well as high-tech-Industry. It can help to reduce vulnerability to poverty and strengthens livelihoods through the generation of a fast yielding and nutritious source of food and a reliable source of income. As it does not require access to land, its cultivation is a viable and attractive for both rural and urban farmers. Small-scale growing does not include any significant capital investment. Mushroom substrate can be prepared from any clean agricultural material in temporary clean shelters. They can be cultivated on a part-time basis, and require little maintenance. Indirectly, mushroom cultivation also provides opportunities for improving the sustainability of small farming systems through the recycling of organic matter, which can be used as a growing substrate, and then returned to the land as fertilizer. Through the provision of income and improved nutrition, successful cultivation and trade in mushrooms can strengthen livelihood assets, which can not only reduce vulnerability to shocks, but enhance an individual’s and a community’s capacity to act upon other economic opportunities.

Mushroom being rich in protein, vitamins and minerals can form an important ingredient of food for a balanced diet.They have been shown to promote immune function, boost health, lower the risk of cancer, inhibit tumour growth, help balancing blood sugar, ward off viruses, bacteria, and fungi, reduce inflammation, and support the body’s detoxification mechanisms.

Mushrooms are thus rich source of nutrients particularly proteins, unsaturated fatty acids, minerals, fibers and vitamins, such as B,C and D. Vitamin B, greatly helps in carbohydrate metabolism and is particularly useful in removing cardiac embarrassment and beriberi. Similarly, the presence of other vitamins like ascorbic acid, pantothenic acid, niacin and folic acid are useful in several other diseases. Their content of the anti- pellagra vitamin niacin is comparable to its level found in pork or beef, which are richest known source of this vitamin.

The mineral content particularly Ca and P are remarkably higher in mushroom than in many fresh fruits or vegetables, which again are extremely useful for body building processes. Most of the mushroom have very low starch content and form an ideal food for diabetic patients.

Mushroom farming consists of six steps, these are Phase I composting, Phase II finishing the compost, spawning, casing, pinning, and cropping. Compost provides nutrients needed for mushrooms to grow. Two types of material are generally used for mushroom compost, the most used and least expensive being wheat straw-bedded horse manure.




Phase I: Making Mushroom Compost

Mushroom compost develops as the chemical nature of the raw ingredients is converted by the activity of microorganisms, heat, and some heat-releasing chemical reactions. These events result in a food source most suited for the growth of the mushroom to the exclusion of other fungi and bacteria.
Phase I Composting lasts from 7 to 14 days, depending on the nature of the material at the start and its characteristics at each turn.



Phase II: Finishing the Compost

There are two major purposes to Phase II composting. Pasteurization is necessary to kill any insects, nematodes, pest fungi, or other pests that may be present in the compost and second, it is necessary to remove the ammonia formed during Phase I composting.




Phase III: Spawning

Mushroom compost must be inoculated with mushroom spawn .The time needed for spawn to colonize the compost depends on the spawning rate and its distribution, the compost moisture and temperature, and the nature or quality of the compost. A complete spawn run usually requires 14 to 21 days.




Phase IV: Casing

Casing is a top-dressing applied to the spawn-run compost on which the mushrooms eventually form. Casing should be able to hold moisture since moisture is essential for the development of a firm mushroom.




Phase V: Pinning

Harvestable mushrooms appear 18 to 21 days after casing. Pins develop when the carbon dioxide content of room air is lowered to 0.08 percent or lower, depending on the cultivar, by introducing fresh air into the growing room. Pinning affects both the potential yield and quality of a crop and is a significant step in the production cycle.




Phase VI: Cropping

The terms flush, break, or bloom are names given to the repeating 3- to 5-day harvest periods during the cropping cycle; these are followed by a few days when no mushrooms are available to harvest. Most mushroom farmers harvest for 35 to 42 days, although some harvest a crop for 60 days, and harvest can go on for as long as 150 days.



Future Prospects:

There is an immense potential for mushroom in India, where a very large population are vegetarian in habit. Mushrooms have very huge and wide scope for export as global market is expanding very fast. Moreover, the per capita consumption of mushroom in countries like USA and Germany is very high per year. Thus mushrooms are a potential foreign exchange earner, which is much needed for the country. In addition, mushroom industry is labour intensive and thus opens up new avenues of employment potential. Mushroom cultivation can be taken up by the farmer as cottage industry and thus it can be a source of additional income. There are several gaps in our production technology also, resulting in low yields or crop failures. Moreover, major share of mushroom produce is still coming from cultivation under natural condition by small farmer, where consistent yield are the major problem due to lack of proper education and dissemination of knowledge on mushroom growing. Scientist and technologies should address themselves in evolving hardy strains and production techniques most suited for our farmers and conditions. Besides developing technology for big entrepreneurs, low cost, labour intensive technology should be developed for small farmers and landless labourers, which would go a long way, not only in generating employment for them, but also developing India into a leading mushroom producer in the world.




(Opinions expressed in write-ups/articles/Letters are the sole responsibility of the authors and they may not represent the Scoop News)



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