The greenhouse and nursery industries in the U.S.A. are, to major extent, container plant industries and as such have a need for a continuous supply of growing media. The components that can be used to create a growing medium are numerous and often regional in terms of availability. Growers want components that are readily available, consistent, and economical. A component that has potential as a growing medium amendment is spent mushroom substrate (SMS). The U.S.A mushroom industry generates 1 billion tons of SMS each year and that SMS is not recycled by the mushroom industry. The mushroom industry either puts the SMS on a field and lets it weather for a year or longer or the SMS must go into the waste stream. When placed on a field for weathering,the SMS continues to decompose and results in a product that has been used by gardeners. The product is called mushroom casing soil or spent mushroom compost, and it is highly organic and has some nutritional value. Problems with this procedure are that it requires land for the application of SMS and the supply of land is running out and there is potential for surface and ground water pollution.
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