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Abstract: An inert substance usable as a casing layer and as a substrate carrier for known nutrients has long been needed for the study of nutrient requirements and physiology of the cultivated mushroom and similar fleshy fungi. Investigations relative to the effects of nutritional treatments on sporophore initiation and yield have largely been limited to the use of compost, either pasteurized or pasteurized and sterilized, although recently, Till (1), using the half-plate technique of Eger (2), has reported the production of sporophore initials and even mature fruiting bodies on sterile wet wheat straw with and without nitrogenous additions. Pope (3) has reported on the use of compost prepared by the action of specific heat molds. These investigators used soil as a casing material. The difficulties involved in using composted materials are well known. The purpose of this paper is to report results from several tests in which a new laboratory technique was used to study the nutrient requirements of mushrooms. In these tests, a calcined earth material was used as an inert substrate for nutrients of known chemical composition and for casing sterile plant materials such as straw and alfalfa. This material is a fired, crushed montmorillinite clay produced in the state of Georgia, U.S.A. It is free of organic matter and contains only small amounts of available phosphorus and cations. Commercially, the material is used as an absorbent and as a soil conditioner.
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