Data Loading...
Mushroom Cultivation is possible in Namibia Flipbook PDF
1 Mushroom Cultivation is possible in Namibia Lydia N. Horn Directorate of Agricultural Research and Training (Plant pro
287 Views
70 Downloads
FLIP PDF 1.92MB
Mushroom Cultivation is possible in Namibia Lydia N. Horn
Directorate of Agricultural Research and Training (Plant production Research), P/Bag 13184 Windhoek, Tel 061- 2087020 Email:[email protected]/[email protected] There are many questions around mushroom growth and cultivation among farmers and individuals in Namibia. Some people believe that mushroom grows only naturally and cannot be propagated or grown. However, mushroom can be easily grown in Namibia and elsewhere using the locally available materials such as grass and straws. Oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus species) (figure 1) are a good choice for beginning mushroom cultivation because they are easier to grow than many of the other species, and they can be grown on a small scale with a moderate initial investment. Although commonly grown on sterile straw from wheat or rice, they will also grow on a wide variety of highcellulose waste materials. Some of these materials do not require sterilization, only pasteurization, which is less expensive. Another advantage of growing oyster mushrooms is that a high percentage of the substrate converts to fruiting bodies, increasing the potential profitability. Oyster mushrooms can become an integral part of a sustainable agriculture system in Namibia provided that proper training and awareness is achieved. Many types of organic wastes from crop production especially in the northern communal area where crop residues are in abundance or the food processing industry can be used to support oyster mushroom production. Cultivation has been tried in Namibia and proved to be successful. Training was given to farmers groups in the northern part of the country during the year 2004 and to certain individuals in Windhoek in 2007 with the help from the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry (MAWF) who sponsored the project.
1
Figure 1. An innovative mushroom grower at his house in Windhoek showing off his mushroom. On the right are the mushroom bags hanging for fruiting inside the fruiting house.
Success in mushroom cultivation depends on the effort and time invested by the grower. The substrate used in this experiment was common reed obtained from a rive bank around Windhoek and grasses from around. In this study, common reed materials were prepared by hand chopping roughly. Mycelium of P. ostreatus and sajocarju was obtained from MAWF Directorate of Research and Training where it is being produced.
Materials and methods The mushroom cultivation demonstration started on the 15 August 2007 at Windhoek. This followed many requests from the community members to get technical support and advice on mushroom cultivation. In this experiment, cultivation was accomplished in the experimental mushroom house constructed by the individual person who showed interest in growing mushrooms at his house with the technical support from MAWF. The temperature, ventilation and relative humidity were accurately controlled. The house was lined with black plastic sheet inside (figure 2) and was constructed from wood. The floor was also lined with black plastic and kept wet with clean tap water at all time. The door
2
had small openings at the top to allow a minimum amount of air to filter in. the humidity was maintained by keeping the house floor wet and door closed at all times.
Fig 2. showing the mushroom house walls lined with a black plastic sheet (left) and the outside view of the house (right).
The following procedures for growing P. ostreatus and sajocarju were based on those of APEC training manual for 2004. Chopped common reed materials (figure 3) were moistened with water until 70-80% moisture content levels were attained and then placed in nylon bags of ten kg. Twenty nylon bags of 10kg sizes substrate were used for substrate medium. The plastic bags were pasteurized with direct steam at 65-70°C for 2 hours in a steaming drum (Figure 3). After cooling the substrates to 20°C, they were inoculated by spreading spawn in the bag on the surface of the substrate. Inoculated bags were kept in a dark room (figure 4) for incubation at 25-28°C. No lights required during incubation. After 40 days, the substrates were completely colonized by the mycelium. The fully colonized bags were then sliced open on the sides and watered three times a day to stimulate fruit body production (Figure 5). The temperature in the fruiting house was kept low between 19 and 21°C by providing water. The relative humidity was estimated between 80-90% and was maintained in that range until fruit bodies developed. The room was ventilated with atmospheric air from outside through an opening above the door frame.
3
Figure 3. river reed chopped to be used as substrate (left) and substrate pasteurization on the right.
Figure 4 Bagged substrates in the spawn running house after inoculation; spawn running is best and faster when kept in a darker place as shown on the right side.
Results The river reed substrate used in this experiment worked well. All the bags produced mushrooms to satisfy a household. The first harvest results were very impressive and encouraging with a total amount of 3kg harvested from 20 bags of river reed substrate. Keeping the house lined with plastic sheet and wet at all times kept the house moist and humid as required.
4
Figure 5. Oyster mushroom ready for harvest (left) and mushroom grower showing the mushrooms that he harvested (right).
Conclusion and recommendation In conclusion this experiment showed that although no sophisticated machines and low cost methodology were used, the performance of the experiment in terms of yield was found to be generally satisfactory compared with some literature reports that one needs humidifiers and sterilizing equipment to grow mushrooms. The results showed that the common reed material around the towns and City of Windhoek areas could be used as mushroom substrate whereby it would contribute to cleanliness of the town and City areas. However it is recommended for one to culture many bags of substrates in order to keep the production going especially when producing mushroom for marketing purposes, production has to be big and run concurrently. It is also highly recommended for the City of Windhoek and other towns in Namibia to support and encourage mushroom cultivation in order to make use of plant waste materials around the city and towns.
5
REFERENCES
Chang, S.T. and Miles P.G., 1997. Edible mushrooms and Cultivation CRC Press, Inc. Chang, S.T. Buswell and Chiu, S.W. 1993. Mushroom biology and Mushroom products. The Chinese University Press, Hong Kong Kadhila, N.P. 2003. Mushroom cultivation Workshop notes. Ministry of Agriculture, Water and rural development, Extension office, Grootfontein Mshigeni, K.E. and Chang S.T., 2000. A guide to successful Mushroom Farming: With Emphasis on Technologies Appropriate and Accessible to Africa’s rural and peri-Urban Communities. University of Namibia, Windhoek, Namibia Mushrooms and Toadstools, Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 1993-1998. Microsoft Corporation Oei, P. 1996. Mushroom cultivation. With special emphasis on appropriate techniques for developing countries. CTA. TOOL Publications Quimio, T.H., Chang, S.T. and Royse, D.J, 1990. Technical guidelines for mushroom growing in the tropics. FAO Plant production and protection paper 106:61-69
6