Carbon Dioxide, Humidity, Oxygen and Light Effect on the Growth of Pleurotus pulmonarius

Carbon dioxide, humidity, oxygen and light was evaluated on the mycelial growth of Pleurotus pulmonarius. Hundred grams (100 g) of paper wastes was weighed into screwed capped bottles and sterilized in an autoclave at 121 °C for 15 min thereafter innoculated with 10 g of Pleurotus pulmonarius spawn and incubated for 5 weeks. Mycelia of P. pulmonarius after 5 weeks of incubation were exposed to 10 cc of carbon dioxide and 20 cc of oxygen gas ran into the glass jar for a period of 7 days beneath the clamps of mushroom growing in the glass jar. The pressure of flow of each gas was 30 psi while the temperature at the time of introducing the gas was 24.7 °C. The glass jar containing the mushroom was weighed daily before introducing another dosage of gases. A glass jar containing mushroom was also exposed to light and humidity with their weight taken on a daily basis. Results of weekly mycelia growth of P. pulmonarius on paper wastes was observed to increase over the incubation period with full mycelia ramification obtained at week 5. Assessment of mineral content in P. pulmonarius revealed that control induced the highest contents of Na (0.308 g), K (0.114 g), S (0.258 g), P (0.189 g), Cu (0.860 g) and Zn (6.340 g) while humidity influenced the highest Pb (0.027 g) but the lowest Na (0.024 g), K (0.072 g), Ca (0.073 g), Mg (0.101 g) and S (0.202 g) respectively. The influence of light induced the highest Ca (0.097 g), Mg (0.121 g) and Mn (1.368 g). Proximate content revealed that control had the highest crude protein (3.077 g), crude fat (0.757 g), crude fibre (1.940 g) and ash (1.993 g) while humidity induced the lowest crude protein (1.940 g), crude fat (0.263 g), crude fibre (1.463 g) and ash (1.435 g) but influenced the highest moisture content (88.703 g) while the influence of light induced the least moisture (85.875 g) respectively. This study will help inform mushroom amateurs, consumers and growers the best parameters needed to increase yield in mushroom cultivation