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    The Cultivation of Mushrooms
    The Cultivation of Mushrooms
    The Cultivation of Mushrooms
    Ebook123 pages1 hour

    The Cultivation of Mushrooms

    By W. F. Bewley

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    About this ebook

    In this book we have attempted to portray in every detail all the processes that must be carried out and the precautionary measures that must be taken to produce a successful crop of mushrooms on a commercial scale, keeping them free of disease and pests.

    This early work by w. F. Bewley was first published in 1934 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRead Books Ltd.
    Release dateApr 10, 2014
    ISBN9781473393172
    The Cultivation of Mushrooms

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      Book preview

      The Cultivation of Mushrooms - W. F. Bewley

      CHAPTER I

      THE MUSHROOM

      Although a great many edible fungi grow in the fields and woods of this country, the majority are regarded with suspicion by the general public, the notable exceptions being the mushrooms which have been used for food from the earliest times. Of the wild forms Psalliota (Agaricus) campestris, the common or field mushroom, and Psalliota arvensis, the horse mushroom, are most common. The cultivated mushrooms have been evolved from these.

      The flesh being white and somewhat brittle has an attractive appearance, while its delicious odour and flavour stimulates the appetite and renders the mushroom a valuable addition to the ordinary diet.

      Chemical analysis has shown that the mushroom contains some 92 per cent water, 4·0 per cent protein, 0·3 per cent fat, and 3·5 per cent carbohydrates, the remaining constituents being in the form of cellulose and mineral ingredients, mainly salts of potassium and phosphorus.

      Mushrooms may be cooked in a variety of ways. They may be fried in butter, boiled in milk or flour and water after previous frying, incorporated in omelets, or used for seasoning soups, sauces, ketchups, etc.

      Botanically the mushroom belongs to the family of the Agaricaceœ. Its life cycle may be divided into three parts (1) the spore, (2) the mycelium or spawn, and (3) the sporophore or mushroom. The full-grown mushroom consists of a centrally placed thick stalk or stripe, which supports the large cap or pileus, the diameter and thickness of which depends upon the variety and the conditions under which it is grown. The top surface of the cap is covered with a soft, silky, skin-like layer which usually peels off quite easily. It varies in colour from white to cream and dark brown in accordance with the variety. The under surface is composed of the lamellae or gills which are free from the stem, rounded behind and broader in the middle. These are white at first, turning from delicate pink to dark brown and finally blackish brown as the mushroom ages.

      The gills are covered with the hymenium or spore-bearing surface.

      Each mushroom produces thousands of millions of brownish purple spores, which are thrown off and blown by the wind over the surface of the land. The truth of this statement can be readily observed by cutting away the stem from a fully grown mushroom and placing the cap, gills downwards, on a sheet of white paper. After twenty-four hours, in a still atmosphere, the paper will be covered with a fine brownish purple powder in a definite pattern known as the spore print. This is made by the spores falling vertically from the gills.

      The stalk is usually white or cream with a soft core. It is encircled by a ring of tissue known as the annulus, which is a portion of the tissue which connected the periphery of the cap to the stem before the mushroom opened. When expansion occurs the tissue is torn, a fringe is left round the edge of the cap, and the annulus remains around the stalk.

      FIG. 1.

      1. Mature mushroom showing remnants of the veil v. annulus a. stalk s. cap c. gills g,

      2. Immature or button stage.

      3. Cup Mushroom with veil intact v and broken on the opposite side.

      [p. 11

      In nature the spores from the mature mushroom fall to the ground amongst the decaying grass, leaves, and other organic material. Under suitable conditions they germinate and produce a dense mass of fungal threads which constitutes the mycelium or spawn. This continues to grow until the top layer of the soil is thoroughly impregnated. The fungal threads being so densely interwoven frequently unite by fusion and then produce the fruiting bodies or mushrooms. When these are first observed they appear as tiny masses of fungal threads but these soon increase in size until the button stage is reached. The button then expands rapidly and the fully developed mushroom appears.

      France has been the home of mushroom culture for many generations, and it seems that French gardeners were the first to attempt it. They soon discovered that if fresh spawn taken from the fields is planted in heaps of suitably prepared manure it will spread rapidly through the compost and that mushrooms may be picked from the surface for a certain period.

      Successful mushroom production depends upon a great many factors, but a plentiful supply of clean vigorous spawn is essential. In France flake spawn was most popular. This was prepared by collecting virgin spawn from the fields and growing it in special beds of animal droppings, leaf mould, and loam. When the compost was thoroughly impregnated with the greyish white growth of the spawn, it was broken down and used for spawning purposes. It was never popular in this country for it soon loses its vitality and is not easily transported.

      In England brick spawn was used for many years. This was made by mixing cow or horse manure, sometimes both, with straw litter and a proportion of loam, and moulding the compost, while still soft, into bricks 8 × 5 × 1 1/4 inches. These were partially dried and inoculated by placing a small piece or more of spawn in each and then stacked together in heaps. An easier method of inoculation was to place the bricks one above the other with pieces of spawn between.

      The heaps were covered with sacks or horse manure to keep them suitably moist and warm and when the bricks were impregnated with the mycelium they were taken out and dried.

      The old type of brick spawn served a useful purpose in its time, and it would be unfair to criticize it unduly. Much of it was clean and vigorous, but under the conditions of manufacture it was not easy to provide adequate protection against infection by other fungi. Pure culture spawn, including the new pure culture impregnated brick spawn, is a considerable improvement upon the old spawn and is more vigorous than the old types. Prepared under proper conditions it is free from contaminations and can be relied upon to yield a much heavier crop.

      In this process cultures taken direct from the mushroom are grown on sterilized media in glass bottles or other containers. If the work is properly done the final product consists of sterilized material permeated through and through with mushroom mycelium only.

      The preparation of pure culture spawn cannot be done by everyone. It is a specialist’s business, and mushroom growers would be wise to leave this part of the work to those who have special facilities for it.

      It requires the same careful attention and clean workmanship as the preparation of fungus and bacterial cultures for brewing, cheese-making, etc. Special laboratories, inoculation rooms, culture chambers, drying and storage rooms are necessary for success: without these it is impossible to guarantee a reliable product and freedom from contamination.

      Many different strains of mushrooms are available to-day and spawn can be purchased to produce mushrooms of almost any shade from the most perfect white to cream, light brown, and dark brown. The colour of the mushrooms from any spawn can be altered slightly by the conditions under

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