Development of an easy and efficient technique for cultivation of different species of Pleurotus

Abstract

Oyster mushroom is one of the most popular mushrooms in North Bengal and a large number of growers are now cultivating oyster mushroom throughout the year. There are mainly three species of oyster mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus, P. sajor-caju, P florida) which are being cultivated in this region. Out of these three mushrooms, P. ostreatus and P. sajor-caju are generally cultivated in summer as it grows in a temperature between 25-33C while P. florida is generally cultivated during winter as it requires 15-20°C for its growth. Bottle cultivation is a technique of mushroom cultivation where it reduces the cost of plastic bags and the plastic bottles can be recycled. Besides plastic bottles, other used laboratory chemical plastic containers were also tested and gave good results.