CONTENTS The right blend 8 24 8


12 16 24 28 34 38 41


Report from the NAMC in Vancouver Trays and innovation at Chelkowscy farm The mission of Peace Byandusya The straw that we use Ammonia in composting Shasta: vacuum cooled compost Towards better variety protection My Farm: Korona Champignons (Hun)


And.... Cultivation tips AdVisie


News


ISMS News Focus


16 34


The spotlight is on substrate in this edition of Mushroom Business. Logically of course, for without good raw mate- rials for production growers would be lost. Each year, all over the world, millions of tons of primary raw materials are selected, processed and prepared with the greatest of care to create a fertile substrate for mushroom cultivation. In his article about the influence of straw, Ray Samp rightly refers to the ‘art of composting’. If you listen to composters talking among themselves about their work, you realise the wealth of their knowledge about recipes, treatments and climate methods - all for a product that outsiders consider to be a simple pile of muck. I experienced the huge role played by ammonia, as explained by Jos Buth in this edition, first hand when I took part in a short course in Horst once and had to make a compost mix with my fellow students using some raw materials and a garden fork. Luckily I didn’t have to take the train home that day. The application, recipes, treatments and the use of raw materials vary widely from region to region, although using phase III compost has become the standard for mushroom growing in the past decades. And indoor pro- duction that respects the environment and local residents is the aim.


Con Hermans warns in his tip that composters can never afford to rest on their laurels: so many weak links can oc- cur throughout the process and these can only be preven- ted through a regime of stringent discipline, quick scans, spore pressure measurement and meticulous hygiene. Thanks to these measures, the quality of European com- post is so high. This means that more and more – emer- ging- mushroom producing countries will start importing this compost, although there is a price tag. Transporting compost by road within Europe has been made far easier due to the removal of financial and national barriers, and improved technology. Transport overseas presents more of a challenge. Compost is a living product and time is an enemy. The article about Shasta is evidence once again that new, advanced technological solutions are being investigated to overcome these obstacles. Until a genuine, alternative medium suitable for mushroom growing is discovered or invented– which can take some time. The opposite end of the technical spectrum is highligh- ted in Magda V


erfaillie’ s contribution about growers


6, 18 5, 19 18 22


Cultivation tips DLV Plant Mushrooms 37 Service


42 Cover foto: Agricultural waste - from sorghum, millet, beans, peas, wheat or maize - is being


soaked for three days and afterwards heaped for fermentation. In Uganda, there is plenty of agri- cultural waste available and growers can use it to cultivate oyster mushrooms. See article page16. Photo: Magda Verfaillie


Roel Dreve Tel. +31 (0)6 23617575 roel@mushroombusiness.com www.mushroombusiness.nl


in Uganda, who still wet organic waste -from beans, sorghum, maize- pile it in a heap and ferment it on the ground in an entirely manual process. Rather like we did during the course. Reading about how one woman has motivated thousands of others in her country to make substrate and grow oyster and other mushrooms is simply inspiring. Substrate as the foundation for a new future. And that is the magic of compost: taking a blend of products, often considered as waste, and treating and se- lecting them in such a way that something new can grow. The latter is something composters and publishers have in common. We are always on a quest for good ‘straw’ and other raw materials, which we can subject to special treatment, mix carefully and prepare for sale to a very select audience. Always a great moment, or not? When that lorry pulls up into the yard and the growing rooms can be filled again.


3


editorial


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