Some of the students took spawn-filled bottles home. I didn't, because I knew I wouldn't be in a position to get into action immediately as my travel plans for getting out of Goa for the next few months were already underway.
So although I didn't really get into the act of mushrooms-growing, I learnt much and also made many friends.
Field Work Notes:
How to Grow Mushrooms
There are many varieties of edible mushrooms, of which the oyster and button mushrooms are the most popular with both the mushroom cultivators and the general public.
Mushrooms can be eaten by anyone including children since they are easily digested and absorbed by the body into the bloodstream within two to three hours. They contain iron, vitamins, calcium and protein. They are especially good for pregnant mothers, and diabetic and blood pressure patients. Mushrooms have medicinal properties and are known to reduce heart, liver and blood diseases including cholesterol and stomach cancer.
Mushrooms can be profitably grown using little investment. However one has to master the techniques and follow all the procedures and requirements very carefully. One does not need land to become a mushroom cultivator for one can grow mushrooms even in one's own house.
Climate: Mushrooms require a temperature of 20-32o Celsius and about 35-90% humidity. They also require adequate ventilation, diffused light and semi-darkness. Too much light makes mushrooms dark in colour.
If the room temperature increases above 32oC, it should be decreased by hanging wet sacks around the place. However the sacks should be first sterilized using savlon, formalin or dettol to avoid fungi or bacteria entering the room. If the temperature decreases below 20oC, then a 200W bulb (for a small room) should be lit to generate heat.
Spawn: Mushrooms are grown from spawn. The colour of good spawn is milky white with a sweet smell or no smell. The spawn should be compact, white on all sides and cottony. If it is yellow, it means that the spawn is old. Any other coloured patches seen on the spawn signify contaminant fungi in the spawn. Spawn should be maximum 18 to 20 days old.
To prepare mother spawn, one needs good quality jowar, wheat or gram. The seed should be of uniform size, good quality, free from pests and diseases and dry. The grain should be washed, all hollow grains should be removed and the remaining boiled for one hour so that it is half cooked. While boiling some formalin or savlon should be added to disinfect the grain. The grain is then spread on a disinfected muslin cloth and mixed with calcium carbonate. It is then filled into bottles which are tightly corked using nonabsorbent cotton. The bottles are then put into a pressure cooker.