Integrated disease management

in mushroom cultivation
Satish kumar
ICAR-Directorate of Mushroom
Research
Chambaghat Solan HP
Competitors and diseases
of mushrooms
1. Competitors

2. Diseases
i) Fungal
ii) Bacterial
iii) Viral
3. Abiotic disorders
Competitors
• Green mould
• False truffle
• Olive green mould
• Brown plaster mould
• Yellow mould
• White plaster mould
• Ink caps
• Lip stick mould
• Smoky mould
• Black compost
• Cinnamon mould
• Oedocephalum mould
General distribution of
competitor and pathogenic fungi
• Compost
• Olive green mould ( Chaetomium), ink
caps ( Coprinus spp), green mould
• ( Aspergillus, Penicillium, Trichoderma),
black mould ( Mucor, Rhizopus,
Sepedonium, Fusarium, Cephalosporium,
Papulospora)
Compost and casing soil

• White plaster mould ( Scopulariopsis

fimicola), Brown plaster mould
( Papulospora byssina), Lipstick mould
( Sporendonema purpurescens), False truffle
( Diehliomyces microsporus) and green
moulds
Casing soil/ growing mushrooms

• Cinnamon mould ( Peziza ostacoderma),

wet bubble ( Mycogone perniciosa) , Dry
bubble ( Verticillium fungicola), Cobweb
( Cladobotryum dendroides), Pink mould
( Trchothecium roseum) and green moulds
Fungal diseases

• Wet bubble ( Mycogone perniciosa)

• Dry bubble ( Verticillium fungicola)
• Cob web ( Dactylium dendroides)
• Green mould / Blotch ( Trichoderma spp)
• False truffle
Dry bubble
• Pathogen : Verticillium fungicola
• Symptoms
• Whitish mycelial growth on casing soil
• Early stage infection results in typical onion shaped
mushrooms
• Infection at later stage results in crooked and deformed
mushrooms
• Infection of part of cap results in hare lip symptom
• Grey mouldy fuzz on the mushrooms
• Localized brown depressed spots, brown blotches
Epidemiology
• Verticillium is carried on to the farm by infected
casing soil
• Sciarid and phorid flies also transmit disease
• Pathogen perpetuates through resting mycelium
• Optimum temperature for disease development is
20C
• High RH, lack of air circulation and temperature
above 16C favours development and spread
• The period from infection to symptom expression
10 days for distortion symptom, 3-4 days for cap
spotting
Management

• Physical methods:
• Use of sterilized casing soil
• Proper hygiene and sanitation
• Proper disposal of spent compost
• Treatment of casing soil with aerated steam at
54.4C for 15 minutes
• Heat treatment of infected casing soil at 63C for
one hour
Chemical methods

• Zineb 80 @ 01-0.2% before and between

flushes
• Carbendazim, benomyl or thiophenate
methyl at 100, 150 and 200g/m2
immediately after casing
• Sporgon 60g/100m2 within 7 days of
casing
• No label claim for mushroom
 Wet bubble
• Pathogen: Mycogone perniciosa
• Symptoms
• Fruit bodies turn in to sclerodermoid masses,
monstrous shape, malformed mushrooms
• White mouldy growth on the mushrooms
• Putrifaction and oozing of brown liquid
• Black circular layer beneath the upper layer of
sporophore
 Epidemiology
• Spread occurs through casing soil, spent
compost and infected trash
• Water splash is an important factor for spread
• Flies also transmit spores
• Chlamydospores survive in casing soil and serve
as primary source of inoculum
• Aleurospores are responsible for secondary
infection
Symptoms of Wet bubble

After 7-9 days

Watering
Picker's hand
Flies
Air
Wet bubble

Chlaymydospores
Survive in Spent
compost, Walls/
floor/roof/ surrounding
of mushroom house for
5-6 years
Sclerdermoids, condia,
chlamydospore of wet bubble
 Management

• Physical methods
• Treatment of casing soil with aerated
steam at 54.4C for 15 minutes
• Proper pasteurization of compost and
casing soil
• Proper hygiene and sanitation
Chemical methods

• Benomyl @0.5-4g/m2 immediately after

casing
• Benomly @ 0.5g a.i. /2 , 3 days after
casing
• Carbendazim, Chlorothalonil, TBZ,
sporgon@0.1%
• Application of 0.8% fromalin on to casing
immediately after casing
• No label claim for mushroom
 Cobweb
• Pathogen: Cadobotryum dendroides
• Symptoms:
• Small white patches on casing soil
• Floccose white mycelium covers stipe, pileus and
gills
• Decomposition of entire fruit body
• White colour can turn pink or red with age
• Younger mushrooms are more susceptible
Cob web of oyster mushroom
Epidemiology
• High RH and temperature encourage the disease
• Spores are easily spread by air movement,
workers hands, tools and clothing and water
splash
• Sciarid and phorid flies transmit 4-100% of
disease
• Optimum temperature for growth is 20C and for
spore germination 25C
Management
• Physical methods
• Through disinfection of casing soil with live
steam
• Sterilization of casing mixture at 50C for 4 hours
• Regular cleaning, removal of cut mushroom
stems and young half dead mushrooms
• Control of temperature and RH
Chemical methods
• Annual disinfection of mushroom houses and
surroundings with 2% Bordeaux mixture or with
5% formalin
• Sporgon @ 1.5g a.i. /m2 of beds 9 days after
casing
• Bavistin + TMTD @ 0.9 and 0.6g/m2 followed by
TBZ and benlate 0.9g/m2
• Application of carbendazim 0.05% at spawning
followed by 0.25% mancozeb at casing
• No label claim for mushroom
 Green mould
• Pathogen: Trichoderma viride, T.
hamatum,T. harzianum, T. koningii,
Penicillium cyclopium, Aspergillus spp.
• Symptom:
• Dense pure white growth of mycelium appear on
casing surface or in compost
• Mushrooms infected may crack, distort, stipe
may peel off
• Brownish lesions or spots on the cap which may
cover the entire cap
Green mould
Epidemiology
• Mould appears in compost rich in carbohydrates
and deficient in nitrogen
• Frequent use of formalin
• Primary source of inoculum could be dust
particles, contaminated clothings, mites and flies
• High RH accompanied by low pH in casing soil
promotes disease development
• Chlamydospores survive the exposure of 9 hours
at 60C
 Management

• Very good hygiene

• Proper pasteurization and conditioning of
compost
• Sterilization of equipments
• Using the correct concentration of formalin
• Weekly spray of mancozeb(0.2%), TBZ
(0.2%) or calcium hypochlorite ( 15%)
 False truffle
• Pathogen: Diehliomyces microsporus
• Symptoms:
• The colour of the fluffy mycelium is white to start with
and turns a creamy yellow at a later stage
• Small wefts of mycelium in compost and casing soil
• Mycelium develops into whitish solid, wrinkled, rounded
or irregular fungal mass
• At maturity they become pink, dry and reddish and
disintegrates in to powdery mass emitting a chlorine like
odour
Epidemiology
• Ascospores develop in the truffles in 3-6 weeks
• Ascospore production is abundant at 25C and
30C
• Major source of infection are casing soil,
surviving ascospores and mycelium
• Ascospores can survive for a period of 5 years in
soil and spent compost
• Optimum growth of the fungus has been
recorded at 26-28C
Management
• Compost should be prepared on a concrete floor
• Pasteurization and conditioning of compost
should be carried out carefully
• Temperature above 26-27C during spawn run
and casing should be avoided
• Cook out
• Initial infection can be checked by treating
affected patches with 2% formalin solution
Brown plaster mould
• Pathogen: Papulaspora byssina
• Symptom
• Whitish mycelial growth on exposed surface of
compost and casing soil
• Dense patches change colour to tan, light brown
to cinnamon brown, ultimately becoming rust
coloured
• No mushroom mycelium grows on places where
plaster mould occurs
Epidemiology
• Primary infection comes through air borne
bulbils, compost , casing soil and workers
• Development is favoured by wet, soggy and
wrongly prepared compost
• Higher temperature during spawn run and
cropping favours disease development
• Addition of less quantity of gypsum and more
greasiness favours disease development
Management
• Good hygiene
• Composting should be carried out carefully
,using sufficient gypsum and not too much
water
• Peak heating should be sufficient
• Treatment of infected patches with 2% formalin
• Spraying of systemic fungicides @ 0.1%
concentration has been recommended
Yellow mould
• Pathogen: Myceliophthora lutea,
Chrysosporium luteum, C. sulphureum
• Symptoms
• Mould may develop in a layer below the casing
• Forms circular colonies in compost
• Yellow brown corky mycelial layer at the
interface of compost and casing
• Develops stroma like morphology
Symptoms of Yellow Mould

1 Initial spots 2 Tikki spots 3 Final spots

Hardening of casing
Epidemiology

• Major source of primary inoculum are air,

chicken manure and spent compost
• Secondary spread is through mites, flies,
water splashes, picking and tools
• Disease severity is generally more at 70%
moisture content of the compost and 19-
20C
Management

• Proper pasteurization of casing mixture

• Benomyl (400-500 ppm) and Blitox ( 400
ppm)
• Calcium hypochlorite solution ( 15%)

• No label claim for mushroom

Ink caps

• Pathogen: Coprinus spp.

• Symptom
• Ink caps appear in compost during spawn
run
• They grow in clusters in beds
• Decaying of caps results in blackish slimy
mass due to autodigestion
Epidemiology

• Infection comes through unpasteurized

compost or casing soil
• Too much N in the compost, use of
chicken manure or short peak heating
period
• Use of insufficient quantity of gypsum
Management

• Use properly pasteurized compost and

casing soil
• Avoid excessive watering
• Rouge out young fruit bodies of weed
fungus
Lipstick mould

• Pathogen: Sporedonema purpurascens

• Symptom
• Disease first appears as white crystalline
mould
• With maturity colour changes from white
to pink, to cherry red and to dull orange
or buff
Epidemiology

• Soil, casing mixture and spent compost

are sources of primary inoculum
• Spread is by water splashes and workers
• Mould is associated with chicken manure
Management

• Good hygiene is essential

• Proper pasteurization and conditioning of
compost
Cinnamon mould
• Pathogen: Chromelosporium fulva,C. ollare
• Symptoms
• Colour ranges from yellow gold to golden
brown to cinnamon brown
• Large circular patches of white aerial
mycelium on the compost or casing
• Fungus produces cup like fleshy fruit
bodies on beds
Epidemiology
• Soil and casing mixture are the primary
source of inoculum
• Spores are air borne
• Over pasteurized compost, over heated
patches during spawn run, high moisture
content of compost and excess ammonia
present in the compost favour disease
development
Management

• Casing soil should not be made completely

sterile
• Spray application of dithane Z-78 on newly
cased beds
• Maintain proper moisture content in the
casing layer
Other moulds

• Lilliputa mould : Lilliputia rufula

• Pink mould : Cephalothecium roseum
• Oedocephalum mould : Oedocephalum
fimetarium
• White plaster : Scopulariopsis fimicola
Bacterial blotch
• Pathogen: Pseudomonas tolaasii, P. fluorescens
• Symptoms
• Brown spots or blotches on the pilei
• Circular or irregular yellowish spots develop on
or near the margin of cap
• Dark brown areas of blotches on the cap
• Brown slightly sunken lesions of variable size
Epidemiology
• Casing and air borne dust are the primary
means
• Pathogen survives pasteurization
• Disease is associated with rise in bacterial
population on mushroom cap when moisture or
free water film persists for more than 3 hours
• Secondary spread is through workers,
implements, mushroom spores, mites and flies
Bacterial diseases of Oyster mushroom

• Bacterial rot (Pseudomonas alcaligens)

• Brown spot (P. stutzeri)

• Yellow blotch (P. agarici)

Bacterial diseases of spawn
• Wet spot ( Bacillus subtilus)

• Sour spawn ( Bacillus spp)

Management of bacterial diseases

• Avoid surface condensation on developing mushrooms

• When the disease is established remove all the affected mushrooms
and apply measures to prevent pathogen spreading by pickers hand
and watering

• Spray chlorinated water (150ppm)

• Kanamycin, sodium hypochlorite streptomycin are also effected

• Biological control with Pseudomonas fluorescens is also possible

• Keep nematodes under check as they play important role in

spreading of bacterial diseases
PHYSICAL METHODS

• Pasteurization of casing soil by steam/ air

mixture
• Short wave length irridation
• Use of water retensive acrylic polymers as
a componenet of casing soil
BIOLOGICAL METHODS

• Isolates of P. fluorescens and other

antagonestic bacteria resulted in 30-60%
control
• Spraying casing soil with mixture of
P.fluorescens and bacteriophages has
resulted in 80% control
Viral Diseases of Mushrooms

• Symptoms

• Mycelium does not permeate or hardly permeates the casing layer

or disappears after the normal spread.

• Mushrooms appear only in dense clusters, maturing too early.

• The delayed appearance of the pinheads

• As soon as these mushrooms appear above the casing soil, their

pilei are already opened.
MVX symptoms:
bare cropping
areas
Premature
veil
opening
Brown-coloured
mushrooms
Sporophore
malformations
Symptoms
• In Pleurotus, virus infection causes
dwarfing or elongation of stipe.
• In L. edodes virus infection causes
dwarfing, early maturity, hardened
gills and thickened, elongated or
barrel shaped stipes
• No distinct symptoms are visible in
Volvariella
Management of mushroom
viruses

• Immerse the wood in 4 per cent sodium

pentachlorophenate solution

• Pick the mushrooms when still closed.

• Keep each room as a separate entity with

separate clothes, shoes, steps, buckets,
picking knives, picking racks, fans etc.
When the disease is already present

• Kill off diseased patches with salt and

cover with plastic

• First pick from the healthy parts then from

the diseased patches

• Wash hands often. Admit as few visitors

• Kill off pests in particular

When the disease is already present

• Before filling, fit spore filters.

• Immediately after spawning, use a

pesticide against flies and cover the
compost with paper.
When the disease is not present
• Quickly remove cuttings and litter and destroy.

• The entire farm and its surroundings should be

maintained very clean.

• In the working corridor formaldehyde should be

sprayed.

• Machines, refrigerator other utilities should be

disinfected with a formaldehyde solution

• At the first sight of contamination, steam out the

concerned room.
Strains

• Brown, cream and off-white strains are

less susceptible

• A. bitorquis is resistant
 Yield loss by different fungi
Common name Scientific name Loss (%)

Dry bubble Verticillium 38

fungicola
Wet bubble Mycogone 80-100
perniciosa
Cobweb Cladobotryum 66.6
dendroides
Brown plaster Papulospora 59.87
byssina
White plaster Scopulariopsis -
fimicola
Ink caps Coprinus spp. 94.4

Yellow mould Sepedonium 100

chrysospermum
False truffle Deihliomyces 81
microsporus
Bacteria P. Agarici 100
General guidelines
• The location of mushroom unit should be in such an area where effluents of
chemical industries do not pollute water and air
• Floor for preparation of compost should be cemented / tiled and covered
with roof
• Raw materials used for compost preparation should be fresh , protected
from rain and mixed in exact proportion
• Pasteurization should be for optimum duration at right temperature
• Do not allow free access to persons working in composting yards to
spawning and other cleaner areas
• Spawn should be fresh and free from contaminations
• All equipments must be washed and disinfected
• The fresh air should be filtered before it enters the growing rooms
• Casing should be properly pasteurized
• Casing should be stored in a clean area
• The pickers should use clean overalls and gloves
• Waste from picking , chogs , trash , stems should be collected and
disposed off carefully
• Avoid surface condensation of water on developing mushrooms
Thanks