Alcorn State and NCAT Co-Host Mushroom Workshop
Friday, Oct. 13 at 9 a.m., a Mushroom Workshop, co-sponsored by the Alcorn State University Experiment Station and North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University Experiment Station, will be held at the Lorman campus’ Extension and Research Complex, Room 260D. Portions of the event will also take place at the Alcorn Experiment Station facility.
The event is free and open to the public. Registration begins at 8:30 am.
According to Dr. Patrick Igbokwe, professor of horticulture and director of the Alcorn Experiment Station, “the purpose of this event is to educate the public on increasing agricultural profitability through utilization of mushrooms. It’s a part of a three-year research effort with North Carolina A & T, which ends in September, 2018.”
Dr. Omon S. Isikhuemhen, associate professor and Dr. Felicia Anike, research specialist, both of North Carolina A & T State University, College of Natural Resources and Environmental Design, will be on hand to assist Igbokwe in teaching participants about the merits and logistics of mushroom production. Afterwards, attendees will move to the Experiment station for hands-on demonstrations.
“This workshop is different from previous ones held, because it will focus on mushroom production on blocks rather than logs,” Igbokwe said. “We’ve conducted research on this topic and have data to share with attendees. We’ll also conduct demonstrations on how to get started with mushroom production on blocks.”
This workshop is one of several that have been conducted since 2015 in conjunction with a $500,632 capacity-building grant from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, titled “Increasing Agricultural Profitability through Sustainable Year-Round Intercropping and Utilization of Mushrooms and Companion Crops.” The grant number associated with this project is 2015-38821-24359.
For more information, contact Igbokwe at 601.877.2204, 601.877.6542, or [email protected].
