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Breeding the button mushroom (Agaricus bisporus)
Article By:
Kerrigan, Richard W. Agaricus Resource Program, Kittanning, Pennsylvania.
Last reviewed:2013
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.YB130023
The familiar button mushroom [Agaricus bisporus (J. Lange) Imbach (see illustration)], originally a forest-dwelling species, has been cultivated continuously for more than three centuries. Today, millions of tons of these mushrooms, with a farm gate value of several billion United States dollars, are produced annually by commercial farms on every continent except Antarctica. White and brown varieties, and both closed-style products (“buttons” and cremini) and open-style products (stuffing cups, flats, and portabellas), are all members of this one species. Several isolated wild populations, as well as collections of commercial cultivars (horticultural varieties), provide a substantial reservoir of genetic diversity. New strains with useful traits are of great commercial interest.
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