Impact of Organic Amendments on Morphology and Yield Attributes of Pleurotus ostreatus Cultivated on Cereal Substrates

This study investigated the impact of diverse organic supplements on the yield and morphological characteristics of Pleurotus ostreatus, commonly known as Oyster mushrooms. Utilizing locally available supplements, including cereal flour (wheat, rice, maize), pulse flour (soybean, gram, chickpea, lentil, and black gram) and cereal brans (wheat and rice) the experiment assessed their effects on cereal substrate composed of wheat and rice straw at concentrations of 2, 4 and 6 per cent. Among the cereal substrates, rice straw proved to be the most favourable for oyster mushroom cultivation. Soybean flour supplementation on rice straw at 6 per cent concentration gave the highest mean biological yield (195.56) and biological efficiency (97.78%). The highest number of fruit bodies (35.51), pileus diameter (8.05 cm) and stalk length (4.96 cm) were at 6 per cent concentration, while the maximum stalk width (1.95 cm) at 4 per cent soybean flour supplementation. This study highlights the beneficial impact of soybean flour fortification on rice straw in enhancing both morphological characteristics and yield in Pleurotus ostreatus.