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Mycologia.
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INFLUENCE
AND
OF
GROWTH
HUMIDITY
IN
UPON
PSILOCYBE
Edmond
TRANSPIRATION
CUBENSIS
R. Badham1
Badham:
Humidity
933
Mycologia
934
Table I
Experimental variables*
Variable
Description
Transpirationratebd
Waterreductionrate8
Units
ml/mm/h
Mean
S.D.
1.1
0.68
(xlO-3)
%/h
0.47
0.39
a n = 89, non-mistedmushroomsonly.
bVariable is normallydistributed.
c
Startingand finalvalues were averaged.
d See Badham (1984).
c Used as a measure of shape withoutbeing influencedby size, see Vogel (1981).
f
Normallydistributedforevaporativedemands <0.2 ml/h.
*n = 75.
(available from the author) calculated many derived variables as well as RH and
VPD [based on the wet and dry bulb temperatures tables of Unwin (1980)].
of 6 mushroom dimensions were made at the beginning and
Measurements
end of 165 experiments by following the procedure of Badham (1984). During
development the shape ofthe basidiocarp of P. cubensis corresponds to common
geometric solids. Therefore, the surface area, volume, and stage of maturity could
Badham:
Humidity
935
be estimated for fruitbodies of different sizes. Since the square root ofthe surface
area is linearly correlated with dry weight (r = .85, P < .001; Badham, 1984),
change in surface area implies a similar change in dry weight. If "per cent change"
is used then small basidiocarps
may be compared directly with larger ones. In
this study "per cent change in the square root of the surface area per hour" was
used as a non-destructive measure of growth while "weight loss per square root
ofthe surface area per hour" was used as a measure of transpiration. For statistical
analyses I used The Statistical Analysis System (SAS, Box 8000, Cary, NC 27511),
Sokal and Rohlf (1981), or Zar (1984).
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
of Psilocybe cubensis,
Although light may be necessary for the development
under these conditions no influence of light was detected on any variable. Illu?
cultures showed no significant differences for four
minated and non-illuminated
important variables listed in Table II. Therefore, illuminated and non-illuminated
cultures were treated identically for further analyses.
Misting the basidiocarps did result in significant differences in many variables
(Table II). Growth rate, transpiration, and final water content were increased by
misting. Even though the set of misted mushrooms was grown under slightly lower
mean humidity (due to chance) its growth rate was significantly greater than that
of its non-misted counterpart. This indicates that cell hydration may have been
a limiting factor for growth. Since misting seemed to have a significant influence
on several variables, only non-misted mushrooms were considered for further
analyses.
To indicate the important variables which influenced transpiration and growth,
a correlation matrix was determined for these two variables versus all other vari?
ables (Table III).
transpiration rate was highly correlated with hu?
Effects on transpiration. ?The
was
a
There
midity.
highly significant linear relationship between evaporative
demand and transpiration at evaporative demands lower than 0.2 ml/h (Fig. 1).
at evaporative demand greater than 0.2 ml/h or VPD
Most of the basidiocarps
greater than 475 pascals failed to grow and had final water contents less than 80%.
Two other measures of humidity (RH and VPD) were also significantly correlated
with the transpiration rate (Table III). The transpiration rate ranged from 0.03 x
10"3 to 3.2 x 10"3 ml/mm/h. There was no significant correlation between the
Mycologia
936
Table III
Spearman correlation matrix8
an =
bns
=n =
89
= P > 0.05, * = 0.01 < P < 0.05, ** - 0.001 < P < 0.01, *** = P < 0.001.
75.
transpiration rate of the fruitbodies and the water content of the mycelial mat.
The evaporative demand ofthe air was significantly correlated with the final water
content ofthe basidiocarp (r = ?.77, P < .001).
Estimates ofthe highest transpiration rate under which this mushroom would
be able to develop may be made by extrapolating the 10 h experiments to the
amount of time necessary for development. If one assumes that mushrooms start
at 90% hydration (the mean ofthe second rank), and that growth is greatly reduced
by 85% hydration (the mean ofthe growth rate of mushrooms of less than 85%
final water content was 17% that ofthe mushroom with greater than 85% water),
and that it takes 48 h to grow from stage 1 to stage 4 (see Fig. 5 in Badham,
1984), then one can calculate a maximal water reduction rate of 0.1%/h and a
transpiration rate of 0.5 x 10~3 ml/mm/h. This transpiration rate would occur
at an evaporative demand of 0.015 ml/h and a VPD of 58 pascals. This maximal
transpiration rate corresponds exactly to what Plunkett (1956) estimated for Collybia velutipes.
In addition to water vapor loss, basidiocarps
lose weight due to the loss of
metabolic gases such as C02. This may explain some ofthe variability in Fig. 1,
Badham:
0.03
Evaporative
937
Humidity
0.09
0.15
Demand
(ml/h)
co
o
u
O
01
-u
kl
Qm
12
-2-10
Actual
Growth
3
1%/h)
938
Mycologia
especially at the lowest evaporative demands. If one assumes a C02 loss of 0.001
g per 1.0 g of mushroom per h (Vedder, 1978), the average C02 loss would equal
approximately 3% ofthe average water loss for my experimental conditions.
many variables had significant correlations, no
Effects on growth rate. ?Although
normal variable explained more than 38% of the variation in growth rate. All
variables relating to the humidity of the air stream and the dimensions or water
content of the basidiocarp
were significantly correlated with the growth rate.
Further statistical analyses were conducted to determine which combinations
of
variables explained most of the variation in growth rate. A computer program
chose four variables among all normal variables as those giving
(SAS, MAXR)
the largest R2 value. They were (i) the per cent water of the basidiocarp,
(ii)
transpiration rate, (iii) height/width ratio, and (iv) the humidity. Sixty-eight per
cent ofthe variation in growth rate was explained in a multiple linear regression
using these variables (Fig. 2). When the values for these variables are put into
the best fitline equation, the expected growth rate will be obtained. If the equation
explained all of the variation in growth rate, then all of the points would fall on
a line with a slope of 1 and an intercept of 0. Negative growth occurred when
mushrooms were exposed to drying conditions which caused the basidiocarp to
shrivel and decrease in surface area. Each of these variables is significantly cor?
related individually with the growth rate even when the other three variables are
statistically held at their means.
Further analyses were conducted to determine the influence of mushroom
dimensions upon the final water content. Non-misted mushrooms were divided
into three groups according to their stipe diam. The final water content of the
mushrooms with the thinnest and thickest stipes were compared with a t-test
(Table IV). Although there was no significant difference in the humidity under
which the two groups were grown, there was a significant difference in the final
water content and the growth rate. Mushrooms with the thinnest stipes had sig?
nificantly lower final water contents and growth rates. A similar procedure was
conducted with the surface/volume ratio. The mushrooms with the largest surface/
volume ratios had lower final water contents, transpiration rates, and growth rates
at similar humidities. The reason for this may have to do with the pathway for
water loss. Thin-stiped mushrooms
or those with large surface/volume ratios
Table IV
Influence of mushroom dimensions
a t-testcomparison of smallest mushroom stipe diam (<4.1 mm) with largeststipe diameters
(>4.76 mm).
bns = P > 0.05, * = 0.01 < P < 0.05, ** = 0.001 < P < 0.01, *** = P < 0.001.
c t-testcomparisonof smallestadjusted surface/volume
ratios(<460) withlargestsurface/volume
ratios (>610).
Badham:
Humidity
939