Use of Substrates Prepared by the Mixture of Tea Waste and Wheat Straw in Agaricus bisporus (L.) Sing. Cultivation

Abstract

The objective of this study is to determine the effects of composts prepared by different ratios of tea waste (TW) and wheat straw (WS) (1TW:3WS, 2TW:2WS, 3TW:1WS, 4TW and 4WS) on mycelium growth, mushroom yield and some quality properties of Agaricus bisporus mushroom. In the research, compost properties such as pH, moisture, carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and some mineral contents and C:N ratios were determined at the end of the pastorization process. The highest total mushroom yield was obtained from 2TW:2WS (227.26 kg/t compost) compost. It was determined that mushroom yields of composts prepared by tea waste alone and it's mixtures of wheat straw were higher than compost prepared by wheat straw (control). It was found that the effects of composts on average mushroom weight, dry matter and protein content were highly significant.