DMR-FFCC

The importance of mushroom culture collection was visualized with the establishment of Directorate of Mushroom Research, Solan (earlier NRCM) in 1983. It was just small beginning with few mushroom cultures obtained from Research Scientist of HPKVV, Solan and Plant Pathology Division, IARI, New Delhi and these cultures were maintained for the research work of Scientists of DMR, Solan. Subsequently cultures were supplied to mushroom entrepreneurs for spawn preparation and to the scientists working in the Research Institute in India. Initially the emphasis was mainly to collect, conserve and supply the cultures of only edible mushrooms. But later on it was realized that several lignocellulolytic, mycorritizic, poisonous and non-edible mushrooms can also be useful for their role in substrate degradation, for finding new bioactive molecules and new genes. Today it is one of the largest mushroom Gene Bank in India preserving the valuable mushroom Germ Plasm.

The main objective of the Gene Bank is to collect, conserve and supply mushroom cultures to entrepreneurs and various research Institutes. All the cultures in the Gene Bank are either mycelial cultures supplied by depositor or tissue cultures from wild specimens. Sometimes there can be contamination of cultures by non-sporulating fungi growing on mushroom fruit bodies so the purity of cultures can not be guaranteed by the Gene Bank, DMR, Solan and not responsible for any culture with wrong identification or contaminated culturesby the depositor