Emerson Tokuda Martos

Cultivation of Agaricus blazei ss. Heinemann using different soils as source of casing materials.

Commercial productivity of the Agaricus blazei mushroom is closely related to both the quality of the compost and the choice of soil to be used as a casing material. This study aims to evaluate Agaricus blazeis productivity using two compost formulations and three soils. The two compost formulations were (i) crushed sugarcane bagasse (Saccharum officinarum (L.)) and Coastcross hay (Cynidon dactylon (L.) Pers.), and (ii) crushed sugarcane bagasse (Saccharum officinarum (L.)) and corn husk (Zea mays L.); they were amended with wheat bran, lime, gypsum, superphosphate and urea. The casing materials were extracted from three soils classed as Rhodic Hapludox, Xanthic Hapludox, and Humic Haplaquox. The Rhodic Hapludox soil material was mixed with fragments of Eucalyptus charcoal in the proportion of 4:1. The compost was prepared during six weeks and thereafter heat treated during 48 h at the end of the composting period. The sugarcane bagasse:coast-hay compost was superior to the sugarcane bagasse: corn husk compost. The Rhodic Hapludox plus charcoal casing material showed to be a better casing material than either the Xanthic Hapludox and Humic Haplaquox soil materials. The choice of the soils where the casing material is taken is an important factor to the success of the Agaricus blazei mushroom cultivation.

Biological efficiency of Agaricus brasiliensis cultivated in compost with nitrogen concentrations

The production of compost is one of the most important steps for the cultivation of any species of mushroom. For the Agaricus species, this step is even more complex because it depends on the performance of different microorganisms that act on the substrate, turning it into selective compost that promotes the growth of the fungus to be cultivated. Among the various factors that affect the microbial activity, the initial concentration of nitrogen is considered one of the most important. Due to the lack of conclusive studies about that, the aim of this study was to evaluate the productivity and biological efficiency of Agaricus brasiliensis in compost prepared with different initial concentrations of nitrogen, according to the composting methodology and to the conventional pasteurization techniques (phase I and II). Three initial nitrogen concentrations (w/w) (T 1 = 1.0%; T 2 = 1.5%; and T 3 = 2.0%) were tested and mycelial growth was determined in terms of mm/day for all treatments. The productivity and biological efficiency were also determined. The most efficient initial concentrations of nitrogen were of 1.0% and 1.5%. This concentration of N in the compost permitted a faster development of the mushroom with higher productivity when compared to the results obtained with the application of 2% of nitrogen.

Cultivation of Pleurotus sajor-caju on banana stalk and Bahia grass based substrates

Banana stalks and Bahia grass were utilized as basic starting materials for the production of the mushroom Pleurotus sajor-caju. Banana stalks were combined with other waste or supplement products (wheat bran, coast-cross hay, bean straw and cotton textile mill) to obtain different nitrogen concentrations. Since Bahia grass is relatively rich in protein, it was combined with other substrates (banana stalk, coast-cross hay and bean straw) to maintain a substrate nitrogen concentration of about 1.5%. Banana stalks and Bahia grass were both more efficient in the production of the mushroom P. sajor-caju when utilized without the addition of other substrates, with biological efficiencies of 74.4% and 74.12%, respectively. When combined with other substrates or grasses, there was a drop in biological efficiency, independent of the concentration of nitrogen. Furthermore, the addition of protein-rich waste to banana stalks resulted in a decrease or absence of fructification, which indicates that high concentrations of nitrogen in the cultivation substrate may hinder the cultivation of this mushroom. On the other hand, results reveal that the ideal concentration of nitrogen may depend on other physicochemical factors and these factors may determine the success in cultivating P. sajor-caju. Therefore, we conclude that P. sajor-caju may be cultivated on banana stalk and Bahia grass as pure substrates, not being necessary their supplementation or combine them with another substrates.

Application of spent Agaricus subrufescens compost in integrated production of seedlings and plants of tomato

PurposeSpent mushroom compost (SMC) is a major solid waste product of the mushroom industry and is the material which remains at the end of a mushroom crop.MethodsDifferent proportions of the SMC from Agaricus subrufescens cultivation were tested to produce seedlings and plants of tomato. A commercial substrate was used, both as a control and in combination with the spent compost in different proportions. So two experiments were carried out, the first was the production and evaluation of tomato seedlings and the second was tomato cultivation from seedlings produced in the first experiment.ResultsThe use of different proportions of spent A. subrufescens compost resulted in a decreasing trend of all the parameters in the production of the tomato seedlings. However, in tomato cultivation for all periods of harvest, a positive effect was observed in fruiting when the seedlings were produced with spent A. subrufescens compost in comparison to the commercial control.ConclusionIt was concluded that the use of spent A. subrufescens compost for seedling production led to a higher total tomato production compared to previously reported production levels in organic cultivation systems with green, organic and other types of fertilization. These results demonstrated the great potential of spent A. subrufescens compost for use in organic tomato production because of the better quality of harvested fruit.

Cultivation of Pleurotus mushrooms in substrates obtained by short composting and steam pasteurization

This paper presents results of two experiments for cultivation of Pleurotus ostreatus , Pleurotus pulmonarius and Pleurotus eryngii grown with different formulations of grass and straw mixtures derived from agro-industrial residues. Cultivation was prepared through a number of approaches, such as short composting/pasteurization and axenic culture. In the first experiment, P. pulmonarius was grown on two formulations of different grasses, with no significant differences observed for either productivity or biological efficiency, with values close to 20 and 60%, respectively. The second experiment revealed similar productivity and biological efficiency between P. pulmonarius and P. ostreatus for both forms of substrate treatment (short composting/pasteurization vs. axenic culture), with similar values to those observed in the first experiment. P. eryngii did not produce mushrooms in the composting treatment and showed lower productivity (17.5%) than the other two species (20.5 and 20.8%, respectively) when the substrates were autoclaved (axenic culture). The preparation for short composting and steam pasteurization was described in illustrative figures in order to provide expertise to small producers who wish to initiate economic and sustainable mushroom cultivation making use of regional lignocellulosic residues. Keywords: Steam pasteurization, lignocellulosic biomass, straw mixtures, mushrooms

Bioacumulação de inseticida em Agaricus subrufescens

O Agaricus subrufescens, conhecido popularmente como cogumelo do sol, e muito consumido como nutriceutico devido ao seu valor medicinal, sendo usado como um estimulante do sistema imunologico e no tratamento de varias doencas, incluindo o câncer. Cogumelos comestiveis, de uma forma geral, apresentam capacidade de bioacumular metais pesados e outras substâncias toxicas a partir do substrato de cultivo. O bagaco de cana-de-acucar e um dos residuos mais utilizados na producao de composto para o cultivo de Agaricus subrufescens. Entretanto, no cultivo da cana-de-acucar, diversos inseticidas como o fipronil, podem ser aplicados para combater pragas. Em funcao do exposto, objetivou-se avaliar a bioacumulacao de fipronil pelo cogumelo do sol, a partir da adicao de diferentes concentracoes do inseticida no composto e na camada de cobertura. Para avaliar a produtividade deste cogumelo, fipronil foi adicionado ao substrato de cultivo nas concentracoes de 0, 8, 16 e 32 mg/kg. Outro experimento foi realizado para testar a capacidade do cogumelo de bioacumulacao do fipronil, adicionando-o a camada de solo de cobertura nas concentracoes de 0, 2, 4 e 8 mg/kg. Foi feito um delineamento inteiramente casualizado com quatro repeticoes. Os dados de producao de cogumelos foram submetidos a analise de regressao pelo SISVAR (Sisvar 5.1). Fipronil foi quantificado utilizando-se cromatografia gas-liquido (HP 6890) com detector termionico (NPD). A adicao de fipronil ao composto afetou a produtividade, com reducao de 12% (composto sem fipronil) e para 4,8% (composto com 32 mg kg-1). No entanto, a bioacumulacao nao foi detectada. Em contraste, a bioacumulacao do inseticida foi detectada quando o fipronil foi adicionado a camada de cobertura, aumentando de <0,01 mg kg-1 (camada de cobertura sem fipronil) para 0,26 mg kg-1 (camada de cobertura com 8 mg kg-1), no entanto, a produtividade do cogumelo nao foi afetada.