International Journal of Environment, Agriculture and Biotechnology

Vol-10, Issue-4; Jul-Aug, 2025

Peer-Reviewed International Journal
Journal Home Page Available: https://ijeab.com/
Journal DOI: 10.22161/ijeab

Evaluation of Low-Cost Grain-Based Media for Enhanced

Mycelial Growth of Oyster Mushroom (Pleurotus
ostreatus)
A.I. Abdalla 1, S.A.M. Saeed2, O. A. A. Abdelmaboud3, Y.F.A. Fadl-Almawla2 and
R.A.M. Babiker2
1Department of Horticulture, Faculty of Agriculture, Al Zaeim Al Azhari University, Khartoum North 13311, P.O. Box 1432, Sudan
[email protected]
2Department of Food Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Al Zaeim Al Azhari University, Khartoum North 13311, P.O. Box 1432, Sudan .
3Department of Agriculture Extension, Faculty of Agriculture, Al Zaeim Al Azhari University, Khartoum North 13311, P.O. Box 1432,

Sudan.

Received: 21 Jun 2025; Received in revised form: 20 Jul 2025; Accepted: 23 Jul 2025; Available online: 31 Jul 2025
©2025 The Author(s). Published by Infogain Publication. This is an open-access article under the CC BY license
(https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

Abstract— This study evaluated the efficacy of low-cost, grain-based media for enhancing the mycelial
growth of Pleurotus ostreatus (oyster mushroom) as an alternative to expensive commercial potato
dextrose agar (PDA). Six locally available grains including wheat, sorghum, maize, millet, hyacinth bean
(Lablab purpureus), and pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan), were tested at concentrations of 10, 30, 50, and 70
g/L in a factorial experiment under controlled laboratory conditions. Mycelial radial growth, colonization
time, and phenological traits were measured and compared to PDA medium. Results demonstrated that
millet and hyacinth bean at 70 g/L supported the most vigorous mycelial expansion, achieving full
colonization (90 mm) by day 9, outperforming Potato Dextrose Agar (PDA) medium, which required 15
days. Higher grain concentrations (50–70 g/L) consistently promoted denser mycelium, rhizomorphic
hyphae, and faster growth rates (up to 7.89 mm/day). The study highlights the potential of millet, hyacinth
bean, and sorghum as cost-effective, locally sourced alternatives for growth medium, offering a sustainable
solution for scaling oyster mushroom cultivation in resource-limited settings like Sudan. These findings
support the adoption of grain-based media in mushroom biotechnology to enhance food security and
agricultural diversification.
Keywords— Grain-based media, low-cost substrates, mycelial growth, Pleurotus ostreatus, Sudan..

I. INTRODUCTION Pleurotus ostreatus is consumed as a vegetable, making it

Mushroom cultivation is a rapidly expanding a valuable addition to local diets (Sánchez, 2010).
biotechnological industry with substantial global growth Oyster mushrooms possess the unique ability to degrade
due to its contribution to food security, nutrition, and lignocellulosic plant residues into edible biomass, enabling
environmental sustainability. Among edible fungi, oyster their growth on a wide range of agro-wastes and low-cost
mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus) ranks as the third most organic substrates (Rajarathnam et al., 1998). This
commercially cultivated species worldwide, appreciated adaptability, coupled with their tolerance to a broad
for its high biological efficiency, rich protein content, temperature range (20–30°C), makes them particularly
palatable flavor, tender texture, and extended shelf life. In suitable for cultivation in tropical and subtropical regions,
many regions, including parts of Africa and Asia, such as Sudan (Çağlarırmak, 2007). Importantly Pleurotus
ostreatus can be cultivated without sophisticated

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Abdalla et al. Evaluation of Low-Cost Grain-Based Media for Enhanced Mycelial Growth of Oyster Mushroom
(Pleurotus Ostreatus)

infrastructure or costly cooling systems, reducing of Agriculture, Al Zaeim Al Azhari University, Sudan.
overheads and making mushroom farming accessible to The study comprised two experimental factors:
smallholder farmers and low-income research laboratories. 2.1.1 Factor A (Grain Type): Six grain types were
Its integration into farm-based crop rotations further evaluated as primary substrates for media
enhances its role in sustainable land use and agro- formulation: wheat (Triticum aestivum), maize (Zea
ecological intensification. mays), sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), millet
In Sudan, the introduction of mushroom farming is a (Pennisetum glaucum), pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan),
relatively recent endeavor. As part of the Faculty of and hyacinth bean (Lablab purpureus). All grains
Agriculture at Al Zaeim Al Azhari University to fit in the were procured from the local grain market in
national Sudanese strategies to diversify agricultural Khartoum, Sudan.
production and enhance food and income security, efforts 2.1.2 Factor B (Substrate Concentration): Four
are underway to domesticate mushroom production concentrations of each grain powder were prepared
technologies. This research forms part of that process, and evaluated: 10 g/L, 30 g/L, 50 g/L, and 70 g/L.
laying foundational work for a locally adapted, cost- These were incorporated into distilled water to
effective, and scalable oyster mushroom cultivation formulate semi-synthetic media. The Potato
system. Specifically, it contributes to building a home- Dextrose Agar (PDA) medium served as a positive
grown biotechnological platform for edible fungi control, representing the classical nutrient-rich
production, a vision aligned with the role of plant breeders standard for fungal culture.
and agricultural scientists in developing region-specific 2.2 Grain Medium preparation
innovations. Wheat agar, maize agar, sorghum agar, Pearl millet agar,
The standard protocols for culturing oyster mushrooms Pigeon pea agar, Sorghum agar and Hyacinth agar
rely on ready-to-use commercial media such as potato Medium were prepared under aseptic condition at the
dextrose agar (PDA). While effective, these media are Mushroom incubators and laboratory of Al Zaeim Al
expensive and pose a significant barrier for underfunded Azhari University. Each grain was separately boiled in
laboratories, extension centers, and grassroots mushroom distilled water for 30 minutes at the specified
incubators. Moreover, the reliance on imported inputs concentrations (10, 30, 50, or 70 g per liter). The resulting
undermines the sustainability and self-sufficiency of decoctions were filtered through clean sterile cheesecloth
emerging mushroom production systems in Sudan and to obtain grain extracts. To each liter of filtrate, 20 g of
similar contexts. agar and 20 g of dextrose were added. The final volume
To address these limitations, this study evaluates the was adjusted to 1 liter using distilled water. All media
efficacy of six locally available grain-based media, were sterilized in an autoclave at 121°C and 15 psi for 20
including wheat, sorghum, maize, millet, hyacinth bean minutes. Streptomycin was added in the sterilized medium
(Lablab purpureus), and pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan), as at the rate of 1 g/L. The sterilized media were poured into
alternative culture substrates for P. ostreatus, sterile Petri dishes (90 mm diameter) under laminar
benchmarking them against the conventional PDA airflow and Medium were cooled at 40°C. A mycelial disc
medium. By identifying lower-cost, locally sourced media (19 mm diameter) was cut from an actively growing
that can support optimal mycelial growth, this research Pleurotus ostreatus culture using a pre-designed sterile
supports the development of affordable spawn production circular cutter and aseptically placed at the center of each
protocols, which are essential for scaling up mushroom plate and incubated for fifteen days under sterile
cultivation and embedding it within domestic agricultural conditions .The radial growth was measured following the
systems. method reported by Zharare et al. (2010).
2.3 Potato dextrose agar (PDA) medium preparation

II. MATERIALS & METHODS Potato dextrose agar (PDA) medium was prepared by
adding 20 g each of potato starch, dextrose, agar and 1 L
2.1 Experimental Design distilled water and autoclaved it at 121°C for 15 minute.
A laboratory-based factorial experiment was conducted Streptomycin was added in the sterilized medium at the
under controlled conditions using a Completely rate of 1 g/L. The sterilized media were poured into sterile
Randomized Design (CRD) with five replications for each Petri dishes (90 mm diameter) under laminar airflow and
treatments. All the experiments were carried out in the Medium were cooled at 40°C. A mycelial disc (19 mm
growth room of Mushroom Incubator Laboratory, Faculty diameter) was cut from an actively growing Pleurotus
ostreatus culture using a pre-designed sterile circular

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Abdalla et al. Evaluation of Low-Cost Grain-Based Media for Enhanced Mycelial Growth of Oyster Mushroom
(Pleurotus Ostreatus)

cutter and aseptically placed at the center of each plate and demonstrating that nutritional and physicochemical
incubated for fifteen days under sterile conditions .The characteristics of culture media strongly influence fungal
radial growth was measured following the method reported growth (Zharare et al., 2010; Sánchez, 2010).
by Zharare et al. (2010). Table 1. Mean square values from ANOVA for grain
2.4 Incubation and Data Collection concentration and their interaction
Petri dishes were incubated in complete darkness at a Source Mycelial radial growth (mm)
temperature of 25 ± 2°C using an electric incubator.
Mycelial radial growth was recorded every three days, Days after inoculation (DAI)
beginning on the day of inoculation and continuing for a 3 6 9 12
total period of 15 days. Radial growth (in mm) was Grain (A) 459.55** 059.64** 48.51** 15.68**
determined by averaging two perpendicular measurements
per plate, following the method described by Zharare et al. oncentration (B) 727.63** 775.18** 476.16** 8.056**
(2010). Measurements from five replicates were then Grain x Conc. 53.97** 86.9** 34.67** 9.569**
averaged to obtain the mean radial growth per plate at 3, 6, Error 35.55 87.03 33.32 16.181
9, 12, and 15 days after inoculation. The daily mycelial
growth rate (mm/day) was calculated by dividing the total Note: Values followed by ** and * are significant at P <
radial expansion (in mm) from the point of inoculation to 0.01 and P = 0.05, respectively; NS = not
the fifteenth day by the number of incubation days. The significant.
number of days required for complete colonization was
estimated as the average number of days taken for the 3.2. Mycelial Growth Performance across Grain Types
mycelium to fully cover a 90 mm Petri dish. Phenological
As shown in Table 2, among the six grain types tested,
characterization at total colonization included observations
millet and hyacinth bean supported the most vigorous
of mycelium color, growth pattern, colony density
mycelial expansion, both achieving 90 mm full
(mycelial compactness), formation of aerial and
colonization by day 12. Millet showed consistent
rhizomorphic hyphae (Sobal et al., 2007).
superiority at early stages, registering 52.65 mm by day 3
2.5 Statistical Analysis and 78.55 mm by day (6). Similarly, hyacinth bean
Data collected from both growing seasons were subjected recorded the highest diameter at day (6) (80.85 mm),
to analysis of variance (ANOVA), appropriate for factorial which surpassed PDA medium and most cereal-based
experiments arranged in a Completely Randomized Block media. Mycelial growth of fungus is highly effected by
Design (CRBD), following the procedures outlined by changing the contents of medium, (Miles and Chang
Singh and Chaudhary (1985). The main effects and 2004). Chittaragi et al, (2018) found that the effect of
interactions between grain type and concentration were media on the radial growth of the fungus was influenced
evaluated using Fisher’s analysis of variance technique at greatly by the kind of media used, sorghum meal agar was
the 5% and 1% probability levels. Statistical analysis and most favored by the different Oyster strains followed by
mean separation were performed using Statistix version wheat meal agar and potato dextrose agar in the order of
10.0 (Analytical Software, USA). Where significant preference. This superior performance may be attributed to
differences were detected, the Least Significant Difference the high soluble carbohydrate and protein content of millet
(LSD) test at P ≤ 0.05 was applied to compare treatment and legumes, which are essential for fungal energy
means, as recommended by Singh and Chaudhary (1985). metabolism and structural synthesis (Çağlarırmak, 2007;
Kim et al., 2011; Muttaqin, et al., 2024).In contrast, pigeon
pea exhibited the slowest initial growth (36.15 mm at day
III. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 3), though it eventually reached 86.50 mm by day (12),
3.1. Effects of Grain Type, Concentration and Interaction indicating delayed but sustained nutrient release. While
The analysis of variance (Table 1) revealed highly wheat, maize, and sorghum showed moderate
significant effects (P < 0.01) for grain type, grain performance, they all supported complete colonization by
concentration, and their interaction on mycelial radial day 15.
growth at all observation intervals (3, 6, 9, and 12 days 3.3. Effects of Grain Concentration on Growth Rate
after inoculation). This confirms that both the type and
The main effect of grain concentration (Table 2) was
concentration of grain-based media play a critical role in
also statistically significant at all stages. Media prepared
supporting the vegetative development of Pleurotus
with 70 g/L grain concentration supported the fastest and
ostreatus. These findings are consistent with earlier studies
most extensive mycelial growth across all grain types. At

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Abdalla et al. Evaluation of Low-Cost Grain-Based Media for Enhanced Mycelial Growth of Oyster Mushroom
(Pleurotus Ostreatus)

this level, mean radial growth reached 90 mm by day (12). similar higher growth rates of Pleurotus ostreatus mycelia
Lower concentrations (10–30 g/L) produced moderate at higher concentrations of grains extracted .Similarly,
growth, suggesting suboptimal nutrient availability. This Royse (2002) Hoa, et al. (2015) and AL-Jbouri, et al.
dose-response effect is supported by the work of Obodai et (2025) showed that carbon and nitrogen concentration
al. (2003), who reported that increased organic content in significantly affect the early vegetative growth of
substrates correlates with improved mycelial growth and Pleurotus spp.
colonization efficiency. Ibekwe et al. (2008) reported
Table 2. Mean performance of mycelial radial growth (mm) for grain type and concentration (g/L) – main effects
Mycelial radial growth (mm)
Source Days after inoculation (DAI)
3 6 9 12
Grain (A)
Wheat 60.90a 70.00cd 78.65c 83.65c
Maize 50.60b 63.00e 79.85bc 88.00ab
Sorghum 49.65b 73.85bc 83.40b 88.35ab
Millet 52.65b 78.55ab 87.70a 90.00a
Pigeon Pea 36.15d 64.55de 80.00bc 86.50b
Hyacinth bean 42.50c 80.85a 88.20a 90.00a
LSD p=0.05 3.745 5.859 3.625 2.526
Mean 48.74 71.8 82.97 87.75
Concentration (B)
10g/L 38.97d 62.63d 73.93c 82.67b
30g/L 44.37c 68.87c 81.10b 88.50a
50g/L 50.43b 75.43b 87.17a 89.83a
70g/L 61.20a 80.27a 89.67a 90.00a
LSD p=0.05 3.058 4.784 2.960 2.063
Mean 48.74 71.8 82.97 87.75
Note: Means within a column followed by different superscript letters differ significantly at the 0.05 probability level (P =
0.05). 'NS' denotes a non-significant difference.

3.4. Interaction Effects between Grain Type and lower concentrations. The observed trend confirms that
Concentration both grain type and nutrient density synergistically
As shown in Table 3, interaction effects between grain determine the quality of the growth substrate. The use of
types and concentrations were significant and legumes (e.g., hyacinth bean and pigeon pea) likely
informative. Wheat, Millet, sorghum, and hyacinth bean improved the media's nitrogen content, while cereals like
at 70 g/L supported the most rapid and complete radial millet provided easily fermentable sugars. Millet is a
expansion, recording the highest rapid radial growth in nutrient-rich grain, comprising up to 84.2% carbohydrates
Day (3) and reaching full 90 mm colonization as early as and 10.7% protein, along with fats (1.5%) and ash (2.6%),
day (9). These treatments consistently outperformed the (Kim et al., 2011; Muttaqin, et al., 2024).This makes it
classical PDA control, which required the full (15) days an excellent source of essential nutrients that effectively
for colonization and achieved a lower growth rate (4.56 support mycelial growth (Kim et al., 2011;Muttaqin, et
mm/day).It observed that Millet consistently supported al., 2024). Kim et al. (2011) reported that agar-based
rapid and complete mycelial colonization in combination millet powder medium was superior for the production of
with any of the substrate concentration at 30 g/L, 50 g/L thermotolerant entomopathogenic fungal conidia
and 70 g/L, reaching full 90 mm colonization as early as compared to other agar-based media. Higher radial
day (9)., outperforming the classical PDA control mycelial extension growth has been reported for common
medium. soil fungi such as Aspergillus niger, Fusarium
moniliforme, and Penicillium sp. on millet-based
This indicates that Millet is a highly suitable substrate for
formulated media compared to commercially produced
promoting fast and robust fungal colonization, even at
potato dextrose agar (Ubogu, et al., 2015). Phellorinia

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Abdalla et al. Evaluation of Low-Cost Grain-Based Media for Enhanced Mycelial Growth of Oyster Mushroom
(Pleurotus Ostreatus)

herculeana, a mushroom found in sandy soils, is also sorghum and maize, suggesting millet as a suitable
observed to grow in areas sown with millet crops like component for its culture media,( Oviya, et al., 2022).
Table 3. Mean performance of mycelial radial growth (mm) for different combinations of grain types and medium
concentrations
Mycelial radial growth (mm)
Grain Type Conc. (g/L) Days after inoculation (DAI)
3 6 9 12 15
cdefg g f c
10 g/L 46.4 54.00 58.00 64.60 90.00
30 g/L 59.60b 69.00cdef 80.60cd 90.00a 90.00
wheat
50 g/L 67.60a 77.00abc 86.00abc 90.00a 90.00
a abc a a
70 g/L 70.00 80.00 90.00 90.00 90.00
10 g/L 40.80gh 57.40fg 72.60e 86.00ab 90.00
30 g/L 50.00cd 59.00fg 72.80e 86.00ab 90.00
Maize
c efg abc a
50 g/L 51.60 60.60 86.00 90.00 90.00
70 g/L 60.00b 75.00abc 88.00ab 90.00a 90.00
10 g/L 39.20ghi 61.80defg 76.20de 83.40b 90.00
30 g/L 42.20fgh 74.80abc 83.40abcd 90.00a 90.00
Sorghum
50 g/L 46.20cdefg 78.80abc 84.00abc 90.00a 90.00
70 g/L 71.00a 80.00abc 90.00a 90.00a 90.00
10 g/L 42.40efgh 72.20bcde 80.80bcd 90.00a 90.00
30 g/L 43.40defg 76.00abc 90.00a 90.00a 90.00
Millet
cde ab a a
50 g/L 49.80 81.00 90.00 90.00 90.00
70 g/L 75.00a 85.00a 90.00a 90.00a 90.00
10 g/L 30.00j 55.00g 71.00e 82.00b 90.00
ij g e ab
30 g/L 32.00 55.40 72.00 85.00 90.00
Pigeon pea
50 g/L 41.00gh 72.40bcd 87.00abc 89.00a 90.00
70 g/L 41.60gh 75.40abc 90.00a 90.00a 90.00
hij abc abc a
10 g/L 35.00 75.40 85.00 90.00 90.00
Hyacinth bean 30 g/L 39.00ghi 79.00abc 87.80abc 90.00a 90.00
50 g/L 46.40cdefg 82.80ab 90.00a 90.00a 90.00
cdef a a a
70 g/L 49.60 86.20 90.00 90.00 90.00
PDA -Control 22.80 47.80 60.00 88.00a 90.0 0
Mean (mm) 90.00 87.75 82.97 71.80 48.74
LSD (p=0.05) 7.490 11.718 7.250 5.053 NS
Note: Means within a column followed by different superscript letters differ significantly at the 0.05 probability level (P =
0.05). 'NS' denotes a non-significant difference.

3.5. Growth Rate and Days to Total Colonization (7.89 mm/day) was recorded across several treatments,
As shown in Table 4, the highest mycelial growth rate including millet, hyacinth bean, wheat, sorghum, and

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Abdalla et al. Evaluation of Low-Cost Grain-Based Media for Enhanced Mycelial Growth of Oyster Mushroom
(Pleurotus Ostreatus)

pigeon pea at concentrations of 50 and 70 g/L. The time (≥50 g/L) led to dense and pretty dense mycelium, often
required for full colonization clustered into three distinct accompanied by the development of aerial and
groups: a fast group achieving colonization in 9 days, a rhizomorphic hyphae, features associated with healthy,
middle group at 12 days (comprising the majority), and a vigorous fungal cultures and predictive of good fruiting
slow group requiring 15 days. In contrast, the PDA control potential, which is critically important for the survival and
exhibited the lowest growth rate (4.56 mm/day) and propagation of fungi (Zervakis et al., 2001; Oviya, et al.,
required the entire 15-day incubation period to reach full 2022). Hyacinth bean and millet treatments, frequently
colonization. These results underscore the superior displayed rhizomorphic structures, considered
biological efficiency and cost-effectiveness of the grain- advantageous for substrate penetration and spawn
based media evaluated in this study. Similar results were development. The presence of these long rhizoids and
reported by Khandakar et al. (2008), Chittaragi, et al. extensive mycelial strands allows mushroom to form either
(2018), Pestsov, et al. (2021), Emayavarman & Singh parasitic or symbiotic relationships. This capability is
(2021), who found that Pleurotus strains grew faster and believed to be crucial for the mushroom to obtain essential
colonized more completely on grain-based and organic nutrients necessary for its fructification (Royse, 2002;
residue media compared to synthetic agar media. Sánchez, 2010; Oviya, et al., 2022).The presence of dense
3.6. Phenological Characteristics of Mycelial Growth aerial hyphae in wheat, maize, and sorghum media at
higher concentrations suggests that these substrates also
Phenological observations in Table 4 and figure 1
supported high metabolic activity, though phenotypic
revealed that mycelial colonies exhibited consistent radial
differences in mycelial texture may reflect substrate-
regular growth across all treatments. Higher concentrations
specific signaling pathways or nutrient profiles.
Table 4. Mycelia Growth Rate, Days to Total Colonization and Phenology

Growth Days
Treatment
rate to total Mycelium phenology at total colonization
mm/day colonization
Wheat × 10 g/L 4.33 15 radial regular growth, Medium density and white
Wheat × 30 g/L 6.78 12 radial regular growth, Medium density and white
Wheat × 50 g/L 7.44 12 radial regular growth, good density and white
Wheat × 70 g/L 7.89 9 radial regular growth, dense, aerial hypae and white
Maize × 10 g/L 5.96 15 radial regular growth, Medium density and dull white
Maize × 30 g/L 5.98 15 radial regular growth, Medium density and white
Maize × 50 g/L 7.44 12 radial regular growth, Medium density and white
Maize × 70 g/L 7.67 12 radial regular growth, dense, aerial hypae and white
Sorghum × 10 g/L 6.33 15 radial regular growth, Medium density and white
Sorghum × 30 g/L 7.15 12 radial regular growth, Medium density and white
Sorghum × 50 g/L 7.22 12 radial regular growth, Medium density and white
Sorghum × 70 g/L 7.89 12 radial regular growth, dense, aerial hypae and white
Millet × 10 g/L 6.87 12 radial regular growth, dense, Rhizomorfic hypae and white
Millet × 30 g/L 7.89 9 radial regular growth, pretty dense, Rhizomorfic hypae and white
Millet × 50 g/L 7.89 9 radial regular growth, pretty dense, Rhizomorfic hypae and white
Millet × 70 g/L 7.89 9 radial regular growth, pretty dense, Rhizomorfic hypae and white
Pigeon pea × 10 g/L 5.78 12 radial regular growth, dense density, aerial hypae and white
Pigeon pea × 30 g/L 5.89 12 radial regular growth, dense, aerial hypae and white
Pigeon pea × 50 g/L 7.56 12 radial regular growth, dense, Rhizomorfic hypae and white

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Abdalla et al. Evaluation of Low-Cost Grain-Based Media for Enhanced Mycelial Growth of Oyster Mushroom
(Pleurotus Ostreatus)

Pigeon pea × 70 g/L 7.89 9 radial regular growth, pretty dense, Rhizomorfic hypae and white
Hyacinth bean × 10 g/L 7.89 12 radial regular growth, dense and white
Hyacinth bean × 30 g/L 7.64 12 radial regular growth, dense and white, Rhizomorfic hypae and white
Hyacinth bean × 50 g/L 7.89 9 radial regular growth, pretty dense, Rhizomorfic hypae and white
Hyacinth bean × 70 g/L 7.89 9 radial regular growth, pretty dense, Rhizomorfic hypae and white
PDA -control 4.56 15 radial regular growth, pretty dense, Rhizomorfic hypae and white

for achieving rapid and complete colonization. These

Conc. 10 g/l Conc. 30 g/l Conc. 50 g/l Conc. 70 g/l findings hold significant implications for the advancement
of mushroom biotechnology in Sudan, highlighting the
potential of millet, sorghum, and hyacinth bean to support
scalable, community-level culture medium and spawn
Wheat
production systems. Their affordability, local availability,
short colonization periods, and superior growth
performance make them suitable for mushroom technology
Maize incubators and integration into sustainable crop rotation
systems. Moreover, the adaptability of P. ostreatus to
these substrates and tropical agro-climatic conditions
underscores its role in fostering home-grown,
Sorghum
biotechnological solutions for low-cost, climate-resilient
mushroom farming in Sudan.
Millet
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that mushroom technology incubators,
Pigeon pea laboratories, and rural production units in Sudan adopt
millet, hyacinth bean, or sorghum media at 70 g/L
concentration as a standard for spawn development of
Pleurotus ostreatus. Future work should assess the impact
Hyacinth bean
of these grain media on fruiting performance, biological
efficiency, and postharvest quality under controlled and
Fig.1. Mycelial Radial Growth and Colonization on Day semi-controlled conditions.
Twelve from Inoculation

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
IV. CONCLUSION This study represents one of the tangible outcomes of
This study demonstrated the efficacy of low-cost, the National Innovation and Entrepreneurship Initiative
locally available grain-based media in promoting the launched by the Ministry of Higher Education and
mycelial growth of Pleurotus ostreatus under laboratory Scientific Research, Government of Sudan, to support
conditions, offering a viable alternative to the imported university-based incubators program. The authors sincerely
PDA medium. Among the six grain types tested, millet, acknowledge the financial and institutional support
hyacinth bean, and sorghum, particularly at higher extended to the Mushroom Farming Technology Incubator
concentrations (50–70 g/L), significantly enhanced radial Project at Al Zaeim Al Azhari University. Special thanks
expansion, growth rate, and reduced the time to full are also due to the dedicated staff and technical team at the
colonization. These media also supported dense, university’s Incubation Unit for their invaluable assistance
rhizomorphic, and aerial hyphal growth, indicating healthy throughout the research process. The authors further
and vigorous fungal biomass suitable for spawn recognize the strategic significance of such initiatives in
production. Interaction analysis identified specific advancing locally tailored, cost-effective biotechnological
combinations, such as millet at 30, 50, and 70 g/L, innovations that contribute to sustainable agriculture and
hyacinth bean at 70 g/L, and sorghum at 70 g/L, as optimal food security in Sudan.

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(Pleurotus Ostreatus)

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