Evaluation of the Influence of Varied Juncao Grass Substrates on Physiological and Enzymatic Reactions of Pleurotus ostreatus.

ABSTRACT

Pleurotus ostreutus is one of the world's most commonly consumed mushrooms. The cultivation of mushrooms using wood resources usually results in environmental issues such as deforestation. Juncao grasses, namely (JJ) Cenchrus fungigraminus, (AR) Saccharum arundinaceum, and (MS) Miscanthus floridulus, supplemented with 20% wheat brain, 1% ground coffee, 1% gysum, and 1% lime, were used as the culture mediums in this research, which offers a composting system with a simple formulation that is cheap and feasible for small farms to use in cultivating oyster mushrooms. The present study assessed the different juncao grasses as substrates for growing Pleurotus ostreatus given their enzyme activities, growth, and yields. The results demonstrated that the yields of pleurotus ostreatus grown on JJ, AR, and MS substrates were significantly different at the level of 0.05 and were recorded as follows 159.2 g/bag, 132 g/bag, and 65.1 g/bag on average, respectively. The biological efficiency of Pleurotus ostreatus cultivated in three different substrates was 75.2%, 63.4%, and 28.7%, respectively. Lignin peroxidase (LiP) was the most active enzyme in each culture material among the other enzyme activities expressed differently between the substrate and growing stages. At the same time, other enzyme activities were differently expressed between the substrate and different developmental stages. Nutrient analysis revealed significant variations, with differences in polysaccharides, proteins, and amino acids among substrates, as well as the presence of heavy metals such as arsenic, lead, mercury, and cadmium in all samples within safe limits. The obtained results indicated that Saccharum arundinaceum is a good substrate in place of Cenchrus fungigraminus, and that using Miscanthus floridulus is not productive. Moreover, the juncao grasses offer a sustainable approach that reduces reliance on wood-based substrates and enhances environmental sustainability.