Forest farming of wine-cap Stropharia mushrooms

Cultivation of the wine-cap Stropharia mushroom (Stropharia rugoso-annulata Farlow ex. Murrill) has potential as a forest farming practice in agroforestry. Two outdoor cultivation experiments were established in central Missouri during 2006. We examined Stropharia production in response to two substrate/casing systems: (1) an uncased mixture of lightly composted poplar wood chips and soil, without casing; and (2) leached and partially fermented wheat straw cased with the same chip/soil mixture. We also examined the effect of soil contact (presence/absence of water-permeable fabric), and inoculation season (mid versus late summer) over two field seasons. Mushroom production during both seasons (2006 and 2007) was greater from the straw/chips system than from the wood chip system. The use of ground-cover fabric did not enhance mushroom production. Further research is needed to determine the most productive dimensions of cultivation beds, to evaluate alternative casing methods, and to explore the possibility of cultivation bed renewal with fresh substrate.