Effect of Culture Media on the Mycelial Growth of Two Edible Mushrooms, Pleurotus ostreatus (Jacquin) Kummer and Marasmiellus inoderma (Berk.) Singer

This study evaluated the effects of different synthetic and formulated culture media on the mycelial growth of Pleurotus ostreatus and Marasmiellus inoderma under standard laboratory conditions. The synthetic media included Potato Dextrose Agar (PDA), Yeast Extract Agar (YEA), Malt Extract Agar (MEA), and Czapek-Dox agar, while formulated media in are cornmeal, rice extract, and wheat extract agars. Mycelial plugs were inoculated into each medium and incubated, with growth monitored daily. However, after five days of inoculation, the highest mycelial growth was recorded for PDA (71.67 ± 3.3 mm) and cornmeal (71.33 ± 1.3 mm), followed by malt extract agar (67.50 ± 2.5 mm). Marasmiellus inoderma exhibited faster mycelial extension than Pleurotus ostreatus, recording the highest growth rate in MEA (27.99 ± 0.58 mm/day) and the lowest in rice extract agar (23.61 ± 0.90 mm/day). P. ostreatus showed peak growth in PDA (14.33 ± 0.65 mm/day) and the least in rice extract agar (11.43 ± 1.12 mm/day). Biomass accumulation and mycelial density followed similar trend, with M. inoderma producing the highest dry weight in MEA and P. ostreatus in PDA. These results demonstrate that both species can utilize various nutrient sources and that low-cost, locally formulated media offer comparable alternatives to synthetic media for sustainable mushroom cultivation.