Locally Available Beans as an Alternative Low-Cost Nutrient Source for Yanagi (Agrocybe aegerita) Mushroom Culture in the Philippines

Mushroom farming provides economic opportunities, but in the Philippines, the high cost of commercial culture media hinders its development. This study aimed to determine whether locally available beans could serve as a cheaper nutrient source for cultivating Agrocybe aegerita in Tabuk City. In this study, researchers measured the mycelial diameter of A. aegerita on five media: Water Agar (T−), Potato Dextrose Agar (T+), and black bean (T1), mung bean (T2), and white bean (T3) agar. A One-Way ANOVA followed by Tukey’s HSD test was applied at the 5% significance level. The species was identified on the basis of its appearance, and the media were prepared by boiling the beans to obtain a broth. The results indicated that PDA (T+) gave the greatest mycelial diameter (49.63 ± 13.28 mm), followed by black bean (31.87 ± 0.517 mm), mung bean (29.09 ± 0.522 mm), and white bean (27.19 ± 0.522 mm) agars. All the legume-based media outperformed the negative control. Higher humidity also slightly inhibited mycelial growth. Although PDA remained the most effective, agars made from black, mung, and white beans are viable alternatives. The study suggests that further research should be carried out to improve methods of media preparation and to promote affordable mushroom production in rural and low-resource areas.