Effect of Inclusion of Different Nitrogen Sources in Various Substrates on Growth Performance of Mushroom (Pleurotus Plumonarius)

Abstract

Indian mushroom (Pleurotus plumonarius) is a widely consumed mushroom due to its nutritional, medicinal and
potential commercial value. In Nigeria, the fungus is grown presently on sawdust and rice husk. This study evaluated the effectiveness of addition of various nitrogen sources to different substrates on mushroom growth performance. The experiment consisted of forty-eight samples in which three substrates (Melina tree sawdust, waste paper and corncob) were supplemented with five different percent (0 -12.5 %) of nitrogen sources (urea, wheat bran and moringa leaves) at interval of 2.5 %. Growth parameters such as spawn run, pin head formation time, pileus diameter, stripe length, total yield and biological efficiency were determined using standard methods. Results indicate that waste paper substrates especially 5 % moringa leaves supplementation, exhibited the best growth performance compared to the other substrates, in terms of spawn run, pin head appearance, pileus diameter, stripe length, yield and biological efficiency. Melina sawdust substrates were the least performing substrates. Inclusion of nitrogen sources improve the Pleurotus plumonarius growth parameters in all the substrates, until a threshold after which the effect of such addition may result in poor growth and contamination.