This item is one of the news releases and story leads that ARS Information
distributes on weekdays to fax and e-mail subscribers. You can also get the
latest ARS news on the World Wide Web at
www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/thelatest.htm.
* Feedback and questions to ARS News Service via e-mail: isnv@ars-grin.gov.
* ARS Information Staff, 5601 Sunnyside Ave., Room 1-2251, Beltsville MD
20705-5128, (301) 504- 1617, fax 504-1648.
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From: "ARS News Service"
To: "ARS News List"
Subject: Mushrooms May Improve Soil Quality
Date: Fri, May 26, 2000, 6:39 AM
STORY LEAD:
Mushrooms May Improve Soil Quality
___________________________________________
ARS News Service
Agricultural Research Service, USDA
Kathryn Barry Stelljes, (510) 559-6069, stelljes@asrr.arsusda.gov
May 26, 2000
___________________________________________
Fungi known as basidiomycetes--the same group that produces edible
mushrooms-- may play a key role in maintaining and improving soil quality,
Agricultural Research Service scientists found.
In many basidiomycetes, the underground parts of the fungi--known as
filaments and hyphae--produce sugary substances that bind soil particles.
This binding together, or aggregation, reduces soil compaction and allows
roots, oxygen and water to move through the soil.
Mushrooms are typically associated with cool, damp, forested areas where
they help to decompose fallen trees. But ARS microbiologist TheCan Caesar
found that basidiomycetes are widespread and important components of many
types of soils.
However, in open environments, the underground filaments may be plentiful
without producing above-ground mushrooms, so their role was not well
understood. Basidiomycetes are the second largest group of fungi known to
science.
The fungi survive with or without living plants and thrive on straw, or crop
residue, left over after harvest. Caesar found greater numbers of the
fungi--and better soil--in land that had been cropped without tilling. So in
addition to reducing erosion, no-till practices could help improve soil
quality by fostering basidiomycete populations.
The presence and number of these fungi may also serve as a good indicator of
soil quality.
Caesar works at the ARS Northern Plains Agricultural Research Laboratory in
Sidney, Mont. ARS breaks ground on May 27 for a new 21,470-square-foot
laboratory to expand on the existing four buildings that cover 24,000 square
feet at the site. A new 5,863-square-foot insect quarantine lab will also be
built to aid in biological control research.
ARS is the chief research agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
___________________________________________
Scientific contact: TheCan Caesar, ARS Northern Plains Agricultural Research
Laboratory, Sidney, Mont., phone (406) 433-9411, fax (406) 433-5038,
caesart@sidney.ars.usda.gov. To obtain a press release about the
groundbreaking event, please contact Kathryn Barry Stelljes.
___________________________________________
This item is one of the news releases and story leads that ARS Information
distributes on weekdays to fax and e-mail subscribers. You can also get the
latest ARS news on the World Wide Web at
www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/thelatest.htm.
* Feedback and questions to ARS News Service via e-mail: isnv@ars-grin.gov.
* ARS Information Staff, 5601 Sunnyside Ave., Room 1-2251, Beltsville MD
20705-5128, (301) 504- 1617, fax 504-1648.
