Fungiculture

Fungiculture, or Mushroom farming, is the cultivation of fungi primarily for food. The cultivation of fungus is also pertinent in the discovery and production of medicine such as antibiotics.

Commonly cultivated fungi

• Agaricus bisporus "button mushroom"
• Aspergillus oryzae

Basics of mushroom cultivation

There are many species of cultivatable mushrooms each having differing cultivation techniques and purposes but most follow a general protocol of these basic steps:

1. inoculation
2. colonization
3. spawn-to-bulk
4. colonization
5. fruiting

For this example, the basics of a simple oyster mushroom cultivation will be explained:

1. oyster mushroom spores or live culture are used to inoculate a sterile nutrient media of agar or liquid broth
2. the inoculated media is left to colonize for 1-3 weeks
3. the media is used to inoculate sterilized grain
4. grain is left to colonize for an additional 1-3 weeks (the colonizing grain can be broken up and mixed once or twice to hasten full colonization)
5. the fully colonized grain is broken up and mixed into a pasteurized bulk substrate of straw or hardwood in a 1:3 ratio and packed into grow bags or other sanitized containers
6. the bulk substrate is left to fully colonize for 1-3 weeks
7. the bags are sliced or holes in the containers are opened that expose the fungus to a high humidity environment that triggers the mushrooms to begin pin formation
8. pins will form and develop into fully grown mushrooms in 1-3 weeks
9. optionally, spores or fungal tissues can be collected from fully matured mushrooms

There is a plethora of information on the cultivation of fungi in home and commercial environments available online, at libraries, and mycology clubs and organizations (NAMA).