Screening of different cereals grains as substrates for spawn development of Pleurotus eous and Pleurotus florida

Spawn development is a critical determinant of successful mushroom cultivation, heavily influenced by the choice of grain substrate. Seven different cereal grains soybean, jowar (sorghum), bajra (pearl millet), gram (chickpea), maize, barley, and wheat (used as check) were assessed based on linear spawn run (mm) at 10 days after inoculation (DAI). For P. eous, bajra supported the maximum spawn run (100.00 mm), representing a 39.54% increase over the wheat control (71.66 mm), followed closely by gram (96.66 mm; + 34.86%). Maize and soybean supported moderate growth (76.66 mm and 75.00 mm, respectively), whereas jowar and barley failed to support any mycelial growth, indicating complete incompatibility with a −100% deviation from the control. A similar trend was noted for P. florida, with bajra and gram again showing the highest mycelial growth (100.00 mm and 93.33 mm, respectively), corresponding to a 33.33% and 24.44% increase over wheat (75.00 mm). Maize and soybean showed moderate performance, while jowar and barley again showed no colonization.