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GUIDELINES FOR FORMULATION OF PROJECT PROPOSAL FOR
MUSHROOM FARMING |
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Introduction Mushrooms have been valued throughout the
world as both food and medicine for thousands of years. They are a rich source of nutrition and form
a major chunk of health foods. Fats occur in mushrooms in minor amounts,
especially compared with protein and carbohydrates, and the fatty fraction
consists predominantly of unsaturated fatty acids such as linoleic
acid, they may be the perfect food for maintaining a healthy heart and
cardiovascular system. Earlier Mushroom eating was restricted to specific
regions and areas of the world but due to globalization, interaction between
different cultures, growing consumerism has ensured the accessibility of
Mushrooms in all areas. Mushrooms are increasingly gaining acceptance in
different Cusines and in everday
consumption. They have created a space in a common mans kitchen. Also,
current trend of consumption conveys the opportunity that lies in the area of
mushroom exports. The two most commonly grown species of
mushroom in Pleurotus is the
scientific name for Oyster mushroom. In many parts of Pleurotus
mushroom requires a temperature of 20oC to 30oC, both for its vegetative
growth (spawn run) and reproductive phase, i.e. for formation of fruit
bodies. The suitable cultivation period at high altitude - 1100-1500 meters
above mean sea level is March to October, mid altitude - Materials
Required 1. Paddy Straw Fresh golden yellow
paddy straw free from moulds and properly stored in a dry place not exposed
to rain. 2. Plastic Sheet of 400 gauge thickness
1 sq. m. of plastic sheet is required for making one block. 3. Wooden Mould Wooden Mould of 45X30X15 cms size each
having no top or bottom but having a separate wooden cover 44X29 cms dimension. 4. Hand Chopper or Chaff cutter for
cutting the straw. 5. Drum for boiling straw (minimum two).
6. Jute rope, coconut rope or plastic
ropes 7. Gunny bags. 8. Spawn or mushroom culture which can
be obtained from the Office of the Assistant Pathologist, 9. One sprayer. 10. Straw Storage Shed -10X8m size. Process:
Compost
Preparation Agricultural by products like cereal straw
(wheat, barley, paddy, oat and rice), maize stalks, hay, sugarcane bagasse or any other cellulose wastes can be used for
compost preparation. Wheat straw should be freshly harvested, shining yellow
in colour and should not have been exposed to
rains. The straw should be in about 5-8cm long pieces, otherwise heap
prepared by long straw would be less compact which may lead to improper
fermentation. Conversely; too short straw makes heap too compact to allow
enough oxygen to enter the centre of the heap and lead to anaerobic
fermentation. Wheat straw or any of the above materials provide cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin, which are utilized by the
mushroom mycelium as the carbon source. These materials also provide physical
structure to the substrate needed to ensure proper aeration during composting
for the build up of microflora, which is essential
for the fermentation. Rice and barley straw are very soft, degrade very
quickly during composting and also absorb more water as compared to wheat
straw. While using these substrates, care should, therefore, be taken on the
quantity of water to be used, schedule of turnings and adjustment to the rate
and type of supplements. Since the byproducts used in composting do not have
adequate nitrogen and other components required for the fermentation process,
compounding mixture is supplemented with the nitrogen and carbohydrates, to
start this process. Spawning Spawning is mixing of spawn infor optimum and timely yields. Optimum dose for spawn
ranges between 0.5 and 0.75% of fresh weight of compost. Lower rates result
in slow spread of mycelium and chances for diseases and competitors may
increase. Higher rates may increase cost of spawning and very high rate of
spawn sometimes results in unusual heating of compost. The optimum temperature for growth of A. bisporus
is 230 (+) () 20 C. Relative humidity in growing room
should range from 85-90% during spawn-run. Harvesting Usually 3 to 4 days after opening the bags,
mushroom primordia begin to form. Mature mushrooms
become ready for harvesting in another 2 to 3 days. An average biological
efficiency (fresh weight of mushrooms harvested divided by air-dry substrate
weight x 100) can range between 80 to 150% and sometimes even more. To
harvest the mushrooms, they are grasped by the stalk and gently twisted and
pulled. A knife should not be used. The mushrooms remain fresh for up to
Mushroom house / rooms. Cube preparing Room An ideal room should have an
R.C.C. floor, well ventilated and dried. An R.C.C. platform of 2 cms. height should be
constructed inside the room for placing the wooden frame, for making cube and
another R.C.C. platform, according to necessity for draining of pasteurized
bags of straw. Only those materials needed for cube making are to be kept
inside the room. Care should be taken to allow inside the room, only persons
preparing the cubes. Incubation
Room A room for
spawn running. This room can
be either an R.C.C. building or an Cropping
Room An ideal house/room would be an
R.C.C. building installed with proper insulation and provisions for heating
and cooling the rooms. However, an indigenous low cost house has been
recommended using locally available materials like bamboo, thatch and mud
plaster. Walls of split bamboo plastered evenly with a mixture of mud and cow
dung may be made. In order to provide a crude
insulation system, a second wall is made all around the house keeping about
15cms space between the first wall and the second. Mud plastering should be
done on the outside of the outside wall. The air space in between the two
walls will act as an insulator, since air is a bad conductor of heat. An even
better insulation could be provided if the space between the walls is filled
with well dried thatch. The floor of the house should preferably be of cement
but where it is not possible, a well-beaten and
plastered mud floor will suffice. However, more care will have to be taken in
case of a mud floor. The roof should be made of thick thatch layers or
preferably asbestos sheets. A false ceiling is essential to avoid
contamination of unwanted materials from the thatch roof. Besides the front
door, ventilators should also be provided from both the upper and lower sides
of the front and the rear side of the room for proper exchange of air inside
the room. The house/room should be installed /framed with horizontal and
vertical bamboo poles required for hanging the block after the incubation
period. The vertical poles can also be arranged in a 3 (three)-tier system as
the incubation shelves. Poles should be preferably 60cms away from the walls
and in between each row of three tiers, a minimum space of 1m should be
maintained. A cropping room of 3.0 X 2.5 X 2.0 m will accommodate about 35 to
40 cubes. Method Chop the straw either manually
or mechanically into bits of 3-5cms in length and pack in gunny bags. Boil
water in a drum. When the water start boiling, place the gunny bag along with
the straw in the boiling water and boil as such for 15 to 20 minutes. Then
remove the gunny bag from the drum and leave as such for Another method of pasteurization
of the straw is by steaming. This method requires little modification of the
drum. (Punch a small hole in the lid of the drum, and while boiling the straw,
seal the surrounding of the lid with a rubber tube). The chopped straw should
be previously wetted and excess water drained off. Place a few stones in the
drum and pour water only at the level of the stones. Boiled the wetted straw
by keeping it in a bamboo basket and place the basket over the stones inside
the drum. Close the lid of the drum and seal the rim of the lid by means of a
rubber tube. The steam generated from the boiled water will pass through the
straw and pasteurize it. After boiling, transfer the straw into a previously
sterilized gunny bag and leave it as such for 8-10 hrs. for
cooling. Take a wooden frame and place on a smooth floor. Place jute ropes, two
vertically and one horizontally. Line the frame with a plastic sheet,
previously sterilized by dipping in boiled water. -
Fill approximately 5cms of boiled straw and compress it with the help of a
wooden lid and sprinkle spawn over the whole surface. -
After the first layer of spawning, put another 5cms of straw and again sprinkle
spawn over the surface, compress it as in the first layer. In this way,
continue to sprinkle spawn over the layer of straw for 4 to 6 layers till the
straw is in level with the top of the frame. Only (1) one packet of spawn
should be used for one cube or block. -
The plastic sheet is now folded over the top of the frame and tied down with
help of jute ropes previously placed below the plastic. -
After tying, the frame can be removed and what is left behind is a
rectangular block of straw. -
Punch holes (2mm diameter) on all sides of the block for aeration. -
Place the block in an incubation room, side by side in shelves in single
layer only taking care that they are not place directly on the floor or on
the top of each other as this will generate excess heat. -
The temperature of the block should be maintained at 250 C. This
can be noted by inserting a thermometer into the holes of the block. If the
temperature rises above 250 C, it is advisable to aerate the
room, and if the temperature falls, the room should be slowly heated up. -
It takes 12 to15 days for the spawn to spread throughout the straw and when
the entire block has been completely white, it is a sign that spawn running
is over. -
After spawn running, remove the ropes as well as the plastic sheet from the
block. Tie the block vertically with coconut rope and hang it in a cropping
room. From this stage onwards, the relative humidity of the room should not
be less than 85%. This can be maintained by periodically spraying water on
the walls and floor of the room. If it is a cemented floor, it is advisable
to pour water on the floor so that water always remains on the floor. If the
block shows signs of drying light, spraying can be done with the help of sprayer.
-
Within a week to 10 days, tiny pinheads will be seen on the surface of the
block and these will grow into full-size mushrooms within a day or two. -
When fruits bodies start forming, the requirement of air is increased.
Therefore, once fruit bodies start forming, it is essential that there is an
exchange of fresh air every -
The fruits bodies (mushrooms) are ready for picking just when the periphery
of the caps starts turning upward. This will be evident as small crinkles
appear on the side of the piles (cap). To harvest the mushrooms, take hold of
the stripe (stalk) at the base with thumb and forefinger and with a gentle
anti-clockwise twist, detach the mushroom from the straw without disturbing
the straw or any small mushroom growing alongside. Do not use knife or
scissors for harvesting. The block will again come to fruiting after about a
week. Yield Mushrooms appear in flushes.
About 2 to 3 flushes may be harvested from a single cube. The yield of the
first flush is more and then gradually decreases, giving a total yield of 1.5
kg to 2 kg of fresh mushroom from one cube. Then the cube is discarded and
dump in a pit situated far from the cropping room or can be used as manure in
a garden or field. Preservation
Mushroom can be consumed fresh
or may be dried. Since they are highly perishable in nature, it is necessary
to preserve the product for further use or for distant marketing. The oldest and
cheapest method of preserving oyster mushroom is by sun drying. Hot air drying is effectively
used, whereby mushrooms are dried in the equipment called
"Dehydrator" (a locally designed
equipment). Mushrooms are placed in wire netted racks fitted in a closed
chamber and hot air (500 C 550 C) is passed through
the rack for about 7 to 8 hrs. After drying the mushroom, it can be stored in
air-tight containers or sealed in poly bags for 6 to 8 months. After complete
drying, the mushroom are reduce to about 1/13th of their fresh weight which
may vary depending upon the variety. The dried mushroom can be easily
re-hydrated when soaked in warm water. Diseases
and Pests A
number of diseases and pests may attack the mushroom crop if left un-cared. Disease 1. Green mould (Trichoderma
viridae): It is the most common disease in oyster
mushroom where green coloured patches are observed
on cubes. Control
: Dip a cotton
swab in formalin solution (4%) and scrapped off the affected area. If the
fungus attacks more than half of the cube then the entire cube should be
discarded. Care should be taken that the contaminated cube is burnt or buried
in a place far from the cropping room to avoid re-infection. Insects 2. Flies: Scarid
flies, Phorid flies, Cecid
flies are found to be attracted to mushroom and odour
of spawn. They lay eggs on the straw or mushrooms, and the larva emerging
from them damage the crop. Larva feed on the
mycelium, mushroom and penetrate inside the fruiting bodies making it unfit
for consumption. Control: To check entry of adult flies during the cropping
period, screen the doors, windows or ventilators, if any with 30mesh nylon or
wire net. Use fly-trap or repellent in mushroom house. 3. Mites: These are very thin, small
crawling insects that appear on the mushroom body. They are not damaging, but
annoyed the grower when present in large numbers. Control: Maintain a hygienic condition of the house as well as
its surroundings. 4. Slugs, Snails: These pests chew up
portion of the mushroom which may later get infected with bacteria and affect
the quality of the crop. Control: Remove the pests from the cubes and kill them.
Maintain hygienic conditions. Other Pests 5. Rodents: The attack by rodents is found
mostly in low cost mushroom house (mud house). They eat the grain spawn and
make holes inside the cubes. Control: Use rat poison bait in the mushroom house. Burrow of
rats should be close down with glass pieces and plaster. 6. Ink caps (Coprinus
spp.): It is a weed of mushroom that develop on the cubes before cropping begins. They
subsequently disintegrate into a black sliming mass at maturity. Control: Physical removal of Coprinus
from the cube is the only control measure recommended. Precautions
"Prevention is better than cure"
is the fundamental motto of mushroom growing since it is a very delicate crop
and curative measures are often difficult. The mushroom itself being a
fungus, when fungal diseases appear, it is often very difficult to control as
the chemicals used against the disease may affect the mushroom itself. Thus,
infinite care has to be exercised from the very start to discourage the entry
of any foreign "germs" or contamination. The following precautions
should not be over-looked : The very first requirement in
mushroom growing is sanitation and
hygienic conditions. Most of the problems in mushroom growing arise due
to improper hygiene: 1. The room
where mushrooms are to be grown should be thoroughly washed and then
whitewashed with lime. The floor should also be limed. 2. The
surrounding of the house should be devoid of stagnant drains, shrubs and
other weeds as these harbour harmful diseases and
insect pests. 3. At the entry
of every room, there should be a trough filled with 2% formalin solution,
wherein the shoes or feet must be dipped before entering the room. 4. The
workers should be clean and preferably wear clean overalls. 5. No
trash or surplus straw etc. should be left around the house. 6. In case
of contamination, the contaminated block should be remove to a spot well away
from the house and buried in a pit or burnt. 7. At the
end of every cropping process, the room should be washed again and white-
washed and fumigated with formalin. 8. The
plastic sheets should be washed thoroughly and then soaked in 2% formalin as
a final wash and then dried out, after every lot is removed. 9. Any
fallen bits of straw or mushroom should not be left on the floor of the room.
Cleaning and cutting off of the base of the mushroom stalk should be done
outside the growing room and properly disposed off. 10. Broken
pieces of the mushroom stalk, while harvesting, should not be left on the
blocks. If the stalk breaks, it should be removed entirely from the bed. 11. Clean
straw is important for mushroom growing. While preparing the block, care
should be taken that it is properly compressed. The more the compression, the
better will be the spawn running. 12. Excessive moisture at any stage
of growth is harmful. The environment should be damp but not wet. For this
reason a sprayer with a very fine nozzle is advisable to avoid large
droplets. Excessive moisture will invite unwanted contaminants, which will be
a hindrance, and in many cases will be serious competitors to the mushroom
spawn. 13. While
raising the temperature of the room, when required, care should be taken that
there is no sudden rise in temperature. The temperature should be raised
gradually till it attains the required level. 14. When
placing the block for spawn running do not place them on top of each other,
otherwise this will generate excess heat. Place the blocks side by side in
single layers only. 15. The
block should not be left un-opened in the plastic for more than 24 hours
after the spawn has completely impregnated the straw. 16. There
should be gentle exchange of air in the room with fresh air. Wind current
cause drying and formation of malformed mushroom. Objectives The main focus of the project should be motivation,
Training, Information dissemination, Technical and Financial assistance for
preparation of culture/spawn cultivation, harvesting, storage, processing,
packaging, marketing linkages with farmers to increase employment
opportunities and generating income.
The project should include one or all of the following
activities 1. Awareness generation, motivation and
involvement of farmers in cultivation of Mushrooms. 2. The
Project should target at providing technical training to women, small, marginal
and landless farmers, rural youth etc. 3. Providing technical and financial
assistance to the farmers for developing Spawn/culture centers. 4.
Information dissemination to the farmers, tribals
about the market available for different varieties of Mushrooms.
Identification and arrangement of suitable market for the collected produce. 5. Conducting
meetings/ seminars/ workshops for providing common platform for farmers and
marketers. 6. Documentation
and publication of useful information concerning preparation of
Spawn/culture, techniques of cultivation of various types of mushroom, their
semi-processing and preservation, quality control packaging and
marketing. 7. Networking
and collaboration among the various stakeholders dealing with Mushroom
Cultivation and marketing. Eligibility
Voluntary Organisation
working in rural areas with a legal status of a society registered for 3
years under Societies Registration Act XXI, 1860 or any corresponding state
Act or a Trust registered under Indian Trust Act, 1882 or the Charitable and
Religious Trusts Act, 1920 will be eligible for financial assistance subject
to the condition that:- Ψ
The VO should have a nationalised Bank or Post
Office A/c for last three years. Ψ
The VO should be working in rural areas, even if the Hqrs.
are in urban area. Ψ
The VO should possess Permanent Account Number (PAN) of Income Tax
Department. Ψ
The VO should not be under funding restriction. Criteria for
project assistance:- 1) The mushroom farming activities will be
extended to the farmers in general and small
and marginal farmers in particular
by eligible and competent voluntary organizations, who
will provide technical and supervisory support to the farmers. 2) The project proposal should be short-term
result oriented in nature, normally upto 1 to 2
years. Preparation and
submission of project proposal The project proposal should be
prepared on the lines of the format prescribed by CAPART. The objectives of
the proposal should be precise and well defined indicating the likely
benefits to be derived and specified the category of beneficiaries. The
action programmes and methodology of implementation
of the activities should be as detailed as possible and clear outlining the
work allocation and time schedule of each activity. Two copies of the project
proposal complete in all respects with organizational profile, Registration
Certificate, certified photocopy of Memorandum and Bye-laws and, Audited
Statement of Accounts, Annual Report, Bank/Post Office Accounts of last three
years and Permanent Account Number of the Organization should be forwarded to
CAPARTs Regional Committee for project costing upto 20 lakhs, and Budget above
Rs. 20 Lakhs to the
CAPART head Quarters New Delhi. Economics: An average yield of 2 kgs per cube (45 X 30 X 15 cms
) are expected from a well maintained mushroom house, although in some cases,
an average yield of 3 kgs per cube are obtained.
The prevailing market rate of fresh Pleurotus mushroom
range from Rs. 50/- to Rs.
60/- per kg and the present estimated overall cost of production is approximately at Rs. 25/-per
kg. Hence the farmer obtains a 100% profit from Pleurotus
mushroom cultivation a) Infrastructure/equipment/materials:
300
sq.ft. thatched shed
and erection of 6 tier : Rs. 10,000-00 bamboo racks-
material support. Cost of trays for
mushroom beds and other : Rs. 5,000-00 Covering materials. : Rs. 15,000-00 Operational Costs Cost of
substrates (straws etc) per year :7,000-00
Cost of plastic
bags for packing products/year:1,500-00 Cost of
Spawns/year :6,000-00
Miscellaneous
costs (Chemical etc.) : 1,500-00 _________
16,000-00 The Spawn Unit will prepare
spawns and distribute to the 20 cultivators and collect/purchase their
products for collective local marketing.
The expenses in this regard would be:
1.
Infrastructure/equipment/materials: i) 40 x 10 floor area shed @ Rs. 150/- per sq.ft: 60,000-00 ii) A 22 liter pressure cooker : 40,000-00 iii) LPG Gas cylinder & stove : 9,000-00 iv) Miscellaneous utensils/accessories :
2,000-00
___________ 75,000-00 2.
Operational Costs: i) first
Generation Spawns in glass glucose bottles: FGS
x 25 Cycles = 200 FGS @ Rs. 70/- : 14,000-00 ii) Tissue
Culture in Glass Test Tubes 3 Beds X 20 cultivators = 60 Beds x 14 days per cycles 308 second generation spawns
in polypropylene pouches ( 104 Tissue Culture
yearly x Rs. 100/- : 10,400-00 iii Polypropylene
bags @ Rs. 250 x 26 cycles : : 6,500-00
Cost
of 2800 Kg. Jowar/Wheat grains required
for culturing 26 cycles @ Rs. 10/- per Kg. iv) Cost
of other chemical components & miscellaneous expenses 1. THE
PROPOSED BUDGET: A.
Capital Investment Credit Support: 1. The Beneficiaries:
Credit Investment Support to 20 identified
Beneficiaries @ Rs. 20,000/- per beneficiary Rs. 4,00,000-00
(Rs. 20000/- x 20) vide illustration 4.3
above 2. The
Infrastructure costs, operational costs
and purchase credit capital as detailed Rs. 2,10,900-00
under 4.3 above. Rs.
6,10,900-00 B.
Operational Grants: 1.
Training for the identical 20 beneficiaries Rs. 10,000-00 in scientific Topical Mushroom
Cultivation 2.
Salary for a Coordinator of the project @ Rs. 5000/-
per month Rs. 60,000-00
(Rs. 5000 x 12 months) 3. Technical
& /Resource support from expert Rs: 10,000-00
4. Administrative expenses 10% of the
total budget ( Communications, stationers Rs. 87,600-00
and contributory establishment costs)
Grand Total Rs. 7,78,500-00
Project
Proposal Components: - The project proposal is prepared as
per the ARTS guidelines. The
proposed activities and methodologies should be specified such as: 1.
Awareness Generation and Motivation
2. Training 3.
Cultivation · Compost
preparation · Preparation
Of mushroom House / Rooms-Cube
Preparing Room /Incubation room/ Cropping
Room · Spawn
/Culture 4.
Semi-processing/ Packaging 5.
Marketing 6.
Documentation and Publication 7.
Staff Salaries 8.
Travel/TA/DA 9.
Equipment 10.
Contingencies/Unforeseen Expenses 9.
Budget (i) Infrastructure (shed etc.) (ii)
Equipment(trays,polythene bags ,cylinders,Drums
etc) (iii)
Raw Materials and Supplies (Straw Chemicals etc). (iv)Awareness
and Training (v) Salaries(Technical
support/consultancy/supervisor/extension worker) (vi)
Processing and Packaging (vii)Marketing
Linkage (viii)Unforseen/Miscellaneous (ix) Administrative
Expenses Resource
Institutions 1. Peermade Development Society Peermade,
Idukki, Kerala
2. Ghisarpadi, District Dehradun
248001 Uttaranchal. 3. Mitra Niketan PO-Mitraniketan
Vallanad
695543 Kerala 4. Indian
Agriculture Research Institute |