Water hyacinth provides good substrate for mushroom farming.

Water hyacinth provides good substrate for mushroom farming.While the Lake Victoria hyacinth is driving fishermen out of business, Siaya County farmer, Naftali Oseka has converted the stubborn weed into the a substrate for mushroom production. The farmer, who lives along the shore of this biggest fresh water lake in Africa, learnt that dry hyacinth can support mushroom farming, replacing the need for expensive bagasse and sometimes seldom sawdust and sugarcane leaves. Instead of struggling to make ends meet with the fishing, he resorted to “befriend the enemy weed” as an alternative source of income.Mushrooms do not grow directly on the soil. They require a medium, substrate, which seats between them and the soil. Most farmers use saw dusts, bagasse, rice, wheat, millet and bean straws as substrates. However, dry hyacinth is a good mushroom substrate when mixed with other trash from organic farm waste.