Comparative Assessment of Pleurotus sajor-caju (Oyster Mushroom) Yield Cultivated from Indigenous and Exotic Wood Wastes

Abstract

The study assessed the yield of Pleurotus sajor-caju cultivated from the sawdust of four wood species: Triplochiton scleroxylon and Ceiba petandra (indigenous tree species), Gmelina arborea and Tectona grandis (exotic tree species). The substrates of the four wood species were prepared by mixing 5 kg each of the sawdust of the four wood species with 10% of wheat bran and 1% lime (CaCO3) diluted with 2 L of water; after which 5 g of each substrate was measured and bagged for pasteurization. All bagged substrates were pasteurized at 100°C to 121°C, inoculated with mushroom spawn, and transferred to the mushroom house for ramification. The design used was Completely Randomized Design (CRD) and each treatment was replicated five times. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and one way analysis of variance. Gmelina arborea, Triplochiton sclereoxylon, and Ceiba petandra attained 100% ramification at six weeks             while Tectona grandis attained 100% ramification at seven weeks. Gmelina arborea had              the highest biological yield (g) of 190.78 g, followed by Triplochiton sclereoxylon (180.25 g) and Ceiba petandra (178.17 g), while Tectona grandis had the least with 107.45 g. The economic yield followed the same trend obtained for the biological yield of all the substrates. Yield varied significantly (P< 0.05) among the four wood substrates. The follow-up test (DMRT) conducted to separate the means at 0.05 probability level showed that the yields from Triplochiton sclereoxylon and Ceiba petandra were not significantly different from each other. The Biological Efficiency (%) were 52.96, 49.92, 51.55 and 29.44 for Gmelina arborea, Triplochiton sclereoxylon, Ceiba petandra and Tectona grandis respectively. This study shows that sawdust from light density wood (Gmelina arborea, Triplochiton sclereoxylon and Ceiba petandra) are better substrates for the cultivation of Pleurotus sajor-caju, while establishing the suitability of indigenous and exotic wood waste              as substrate. The findings of this study is recommended for large scale production of          Pleurotus sajor-caju.