From: gunilla.fagerholm@_NO_JUNK_telia.com   
      
   On 9 Jun 2006 23:45:39 -0700, dwheeler@ipns.com wrote:   
      
   Thanks a lot for the very interesting info you sent today. I knew that   
   it is good fertilizer and that it traps nematodes. I also knew that it   
   could be used for cattle feed and for cleaning the soil..   
      
   What i did not know was that it can be used in the battle against   
   insect and water borne diseases and that is very interesting.   
      
   When we lived in the bush in Kenya we had stagnant water close to our   
   house and we had lots of malaria attacks. If we had known that, we   
   would of course have thrown some of all our inoculated bags into that   
   pool.   
      
   I am forwarding all your info to our friends. Please, all of you, keep   
   giving me more info.   
      
   Tks a lot   
   Gunilla F   
   >   
   >Pleurotus ostreatus has many other useful properties which are not   
   >necessarily medicinally related.   
   >   
   >Paul Stamets has recently shown a strain of P.o. to break-down   
   >(degrade) diesel-contamined soil in Seattle. While he is working with a   
   >specific strain, an inoculation with spores would probably yield   
   >multiple strains from a single layer of straw, bran, corn husks, coffee   
   >beans, hay,  wood chips or similar easily collected biomass form. P.o.   
   >is known to grow rapidly at 77 degrees F., and therefore would useful   
   >in more temperate climates of the world. Plus, it can under nearly   
   >ideal conditions, provide nearly 2 pounds fresh-weight mushrooms for   
   >every pound dry-weight substrate. Additionally, Stamets has shown that   
   >straw which has been colonized by P.o. and produced mushrooms, can also   
   >be used as a rich fodder for animals. Because the cellulose cell walls   
   >have already been broken down, it is necessary to blend the spent   
   >mushroom substrate with some additional form of roughage to keep   
   >animals from foundering.   
   >   
   >Horses, cattle, goats, sheep, chickens, and likely a host of other   
   >animal life might reliably consume such spent mushroom compost. Nor is   
   >this limited to just P.o. Similar consumption of wood chips after   
   >colonization by Hericium erinaceus, H. corralloides, H. ramosum, or H.   
   >abietis is a possibility.   
   >   
   >Stamets is also using P.o. inoculated bags of straw for   
   >"mycofiltration", i.e. filtration of fecal coliform bacteria from   
   >water, and nematode infestations from soil. Several forms of fungi   
   >which can be grown will actually trap soil nematodes, and use their   
   >added nitrogen as a growth boost.   
   >   
   >A small packet of straw may be a fast and cheap way to kill mosquitoes   
   >in mall bodies of water. Lo-tech and pretty effective. There is some   
   >marketing of this in the US now for preventing the spread of   
   >mosquito-born diseases (as well as killing mosquito larvae).   
   >   
   >Maitake has been studied with AIDS, as well as Grifola umbellifera. I   
   >believe G.u. has the better data for AIDS treatment, but is difficult   
   >to grow.   
   >   
   >In Africa there is also the Termitomyces fungus which grows on old   
   >termite mounds. This fungus is supposed to be edible for many people (I   
   >have not personally tried it), and may also have medicinal properties.   
   >Since it is not readily available to me or others in the US, African   
   >tests seem appropriate.   
   >   
   >Daniel B. Wheeler   
   >   
      
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