Mushroom composting

Composting compositions are provided which avoid conventional composting for production of mushrooms requiring casing. A mixture of steer manure and peat moss in combination with a small amount of an agent for maintaining permeability is mixed with water and sterilized. The resulting product provides excellent composting for mushrooms requiring casing, with rapid production and high yield.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
1. Field of the Invention 
There are continuing efforts to improve methods of production and yield of 
mushrooms. Mushrooms are a desirable source of human food, being high in 
protein and normally growing on waste materials. One group of mushrooms 
which is grown commercially, normally employs a hot manure and its bedding 
mixture as a substrate and after the substrate has been properly composted 
outdoor and indoor and then it is inoculated with spawn and the mycelium 
established, a layer of soil is placed over the substrate which is 
referred to as a casing. 
The most common mushroom which is grown commercially in this manner is the 
Agaricus bisporus, commonly referred to as the common button mushroom. A 
vast literature exists on the manner in which this mushroom and comparable 
mushrooms may be cultivated. Nevertheless, there is continuing interest in 
developing new composting which provides simpler methods for preparing 
composting and improved mushroom growth. 
DESCRIPTION FROM THE PRIOR ART 
Texts of interest are Singer, Mushrooms and Truffles, Interscience 
Publishers, Inc., New York (1961) and Gray, The Use of Fungi as Food and 
in Food Processing, CRC Press, Cleveland, Ohio (1970). United States 
patents of interest include U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,832,593; 1,833,089, 
2,005,365; 2,677,917; 2,761,246; and 3,560,190. Foreign patents of 
interest include UK Patent No. 462,316; French Patent No. 1,445,649 and 
Japanese Patent Nos. 8756/64; 16050/70; 27768/70; 28527/70; 28532/70; 
37047/70; 25682/71; 22768/72; 42660/72; and 3334/74; 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
A novel composting composition is provided for growing mushrooms requiring 
casing which comprises a combination of a cold manure and a naturally 
occurring humic acid containing cooloidal material, with a small amount of 
an inorganic material to enhance permeability. Upon the addition of water 
and pasteurization, it is found that the nitrogen content of the 
composition is substantially maintained and there is a substantial absence 
of free ammonia. The composting is then inoculated with spawn, incubated, 
a casing applied to the composting and the fruiting bodies harvested. The 
procedure for growing the mushrooms is conventional.

DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS 
A novel composting composition for mushrooms is provided comprising a cold 
manure, a moss or member of the musci family, particularly sphagnum, a 
small amount of an inorganic material to provide permeability and water. 
There is a recognized distinction between hot and cold manure. Hot manures 
are those which on composting generate substantial heat. Illustrative of 
such manures are horse and chicken manure. By contrast, cold manures on 
composting do not generate large amounts of heat. Cold manures are 
illustrated by steer manure, cow manure, sheep manure, pig manure and the 
like. These manures are used in their dried form and may or may not have 
been previously sterilized. 
To the manure is added any of a variety of naturally occurring humic acid 
containing colloidal material, e.g. mosses, particularly sphagnopsida, 
individually or in combination. Illustrative mosses include peat moss, oak 
leaf moss, and the like. 
As an alternative to mosses, other naturally occuring colloidal materials 
may be employed. Illustrative of such material is walnut shavings and leaf 
mold. 
The significant factor in the subject invention is the presence of a 
sufficient amount of humic acid in a colloidal particle which serves to 
bind nitrogen, particularly as ammonia or ammonium compounds, during the 
thermal pasteurization process. 
The third material which is added to provide permeability, so as to allow 
satisfactory aeration of the compost. Conveniently, gypsum is most 
commonly used. 
In addition, minor amounts of nutrients may be added, such as phosphate, 
nitrogen, saccharides, or trace elements. These materials are not 
essential, but may find particular application in special situations or 
with individual mushrooms. 
Normally, about one part of the manure will be added to from 0.5 to one 
part of the moss or its equivalent. To this mixture will then be added 
about 2 to 10, more usually about 4 to 6 weight percent based on the 
manure-moss combination of a permeability agent e.g. gypsum. 
The dry mixture is mixed with water, in about 50 to 70 weight percent based 
on the dry mixture, so as to provide a substantially homogeneous mixture. 
Any convenient means for mixing the various ingredients together may be 
employed, such as a rotating drum, paddles or the like. 
The product is then pasteurized by heating at a temperature of from about 
35.degree. to 121.degree. C, more usually from about 85.degree. to 
100.degree. C for from about 0.5 to 4.5 hours. To insure the destruction 
of microorganisms, the higher temperatures are preferred. 
It is found that during the pasteurization step, little if any nitrogen is 
lost, and there is a substantial absence of an ammonia odor, or free 
ammonia which is quite toxic to the growth of fungi. 
The composting composition is now ready to be employed for mushroom growth. 
By the subject procedure described above, the long arduous and tedious 
process of composting the hot manures is avoided, while obtaining an 
excellent substrate for the growth for mushrooms. 
It accordance with conventional procedures of growing mushrooms, the 
composting substrate is now spread into a bed, tray, or plastic bag, 
usually to a thickness of about 6 to 8 inches. 
The composting bed is then inoculated with spawn. Various types of spawn 
may be used, such as manure spawn, grain spawn and the like. The spawn is 
introduced into the bed, so as to be covered to a depth by about one to 
two inches of the composting material. 
After the inoculation with spawn, the temperature is maintained at about 
20.degree. to 25.degree. C for up to about 3 weeks usually at least 10 
days. A casing is then applied which can be soil, moss, or the like. The 
casing is usually of a thickness of about 1 to 1.5 inches. The mycelia 
then grown into the casing to provide fruiting bodies. After the casing 
during the growth of the mycelia and the initiation of fruiting bodies, 
the temperature is normally maintained at about 18.degree. C plus or minus 
2.degree. . Within 2 weeks the fruiting bodies have started to form and a 
week later may be harvested. After harvesting, the bed is watered and a 
new crop of mushrooms is normally ready to harvest in about ten days. From 
about five to six harvests can be obtained before the bed is exhausted. 
For home use or harvesting of small crops, a terrarium may be employed, 
with the compost introduced into the bottom of the terrarium. The 
terrarium then provides the desired moist environment for the growth of 
the mushrooms. 
In accordance with the subject invention, a novel composting composition is 
provided for the growth of mushrooms, which avoids the more tedious and 
arduous techniques which have previously been used. With the subject 
compost, excellent yields of mushrooms are achieved within relatively 
short periods of time from the time of inoculation. The mycelia are able 
to rapidly establish themselves, and growth is achieved in substantially 
the same manner as was employed for composting obtained by prior art 
methods. 
Although the foregoing invention has been described in some detail by way 
of illustration and example for purposes of clarity of understanding, it 
will be obvious that certain changes and modifications may be practiced 
within the scope of the appended claims.