Abstract

Limited access to oyster mushroom (Pleurotus Ostreatus) substrates and the high cost of production are among the constraints affecting mushroom farming in Kenya. In an effort to solve the above problem, a study was carried out in Egerton University to determine the effect of grain spawn and substrates on growth and yield of oyster mushroom grown under different cropping shelters. The study was laid out as 8×2×3 factorial experiment in a completely randomized design (CRD), where 8 levels of substrates (wheat straw, kikuyu grass, uncomposted grevillea sawdust, corn cobs, and their combinations), 2 levels of grain spawn (popcorn, rice), and 3 levels of cropping shelters (mikeka, shade net and dark house) were evaluated on their effect on growth and yield of oyster mushroom. The results showed that the substrates and cereal grain spawn significantly affected the growth and yield of Pleurotus ostreatus grown under mikeka, shade net, and dark cropping shelters at P≤0.005. The total biological efficiency showed the highest yields in interaction of mikeka shelter × corn cobs × rice spawn with 109.1 g, respectively. The study recommends corn cobs with rice spawn grown under mikeka cropping shelter to be used for the production of oyster mushroom in Kenya.

Key words: Mushroom seeds, agriculture residuals, production structure, harvest.