INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL TECHNOLOGY

Volume 14, No. 07, Month DECEMBER, Year 2018, Pages 1535 - 1560

Ethnostudy of mushrooms and establishment of pure culture of cantharellus species (ero umunwene) a newly discovered mushroom found in ukwa-east, abia state, nigeria

Okigbo, R. N. and Okigbo, J. E.

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The investigation focused on indigenous knowledge of mushrooms and establishment of pure culture of Cantharellus species (Eroumunwene) a newly discovered mushroom found in Ukwa-East,Abia State. A well-structured questionnaire was designed to assist in obtaining crucial information from the people of the study area.Fresh mushrooms of Cantharellus species (Eroumunwene)were harvested from bush around Ohanso in Ukwa-East Local Government Area of Abia State.Mushroom samples were prepared for spore printing which were used in identification and characterization. Also establishment of pure culture using both tissue culture and spore culture methods were adopted. Descriptive statistics were adopted and relationships among some variable were checked with percentage error bars in MS EXCEL. Eighty-five (60.71%) of the 140 administered questionnaires successfully retrieved were fully responded to. The results were analyzed by gender, age groups, and locations. The people in the study area consume about fourteen mushroom species. The study showed that more than 85% of the respondents consume edible mushrooms because of its palatability and nutritional importance, also 23% respondents take them as substitute for meat, while 10% of the respondents consume mushrooms because of its medicinal purpose. The study also showed that more than 95% of respondents use sun drying, 13% use refrigeration, 9% make use of flaming, 1% oven dry while 2% of the respondents use salt solution to preserve harvested mushrooms. Over 87% and 54% of respondents regarded mushroom hunting as work for young women and children respectively. More than 84% of the respondents have interest in mushroom cultivation. Pure culture of Cantharellus species was not established. The residents of Ukwa-East Local Government Area of Abia State have indigenous knowledge of mushrooms and their uses. However, further studies on establishment of pure culture are highly recommended.

Keywords

mushrooms, ethnostudy, Cantharellus species, pure culture, Abia state

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