Changes in the Concentration of Soluble Anions in Compost During Composting and Mushroom (Agaricus bisporus) Growth

Abstract

The changes in the concentration of nitrate, phosphate, chloride, sulphate, formate, acetate and oxalate anions extracted with water from conventional compost during composting and mushroom growth, and mushroom fruit bodies during cropping, were measured using an ion exchange chromatograph and a pulsed electrochemical detector. The addition of gypsum at Phase I in conventional composting dramatically increased the content of sulphate but lowered the content of oxalate (dry matter basis). Chloride in compost increased gradually during composting and mushroom growth probably due to its introduction in water used to irrigate the crop. Phosphate increased during the early stages of composting but decreased in spawning and fruit body formation. In fruit bodies, the relative content of boiling water extract decreased in successive flushes. Individual anions, acetate and oxalate increased steadily, phosphate and chloride decreased gradually and sulphate and nitrate first decreased steeply and then more slowly. Formate did not change. Phosphate, acetate, chloride and oxalate were higher in small buttons than in large buttons, but there were no differences for sulphate, nitrate or formate.

Microbial Ecology of Compost Ecosystem: With Special Reference to Mushroom Compost

“…Considering the fact that culturable microbial population are limited on account of our poor understanding of their nutritional requirements, detailed in situ enzymatic investigations are likely to provide a better understanding of the relationship between structural and functional diversity of thermophilic fungal community. Increase in protein content and loss of cellulose and lignocellulose during the composting period was a result of increased polysaccharolytic activity of the fungal biomass; this resulted in increased level of reducing sugars 44 . The level of enzyme was found to increase from zero days to the end of Phase I compost 45 ; subsequently it decreased continuously but the data was well corroborated with population structure.…”