Table “Button” Mushroom Agaricus bisporus

Table “Button” Mushroom Agaricus bisporus Eukaryote Nuclei in Cells Multicellular Cell wall present Heterotroph Sessile Mostly sexual reproduction Kingdom Fungi

Table “Button” Mushroom Agaricus bisporus Kingdom Division Class Order Family Genus Species Fungi Basidiomycota (club fungi) Agaricomycetes Agaricales (gilled fungi) Agaricaceae Agaricus bisporus

Agaricus bisporus Native to North America, these common fungi are naturally found in manure heaps, garden waste and roadsides, as well as at the base of trees.

Agaricus bisporus The mushroom itself is just the “fruit” of a tangle of hyphae that are in the soil eating nutrients that are available.

Agaricus bisporus It’s only when the fungus attempts to breed and spread spores sexually that the mushroom grows up out of the soil.

Agaricus bisporus Like most members of the order Agaricales, table mushrooms have “gills”, or folds under the hood of the mushroom to allow spread of millions of new spores.

Growing Mushrooms A. bisporus is an edible mushroom that is the #1 produced mushroom in the US and makes up about 40% of the world market.

Varieties of Agaricus bisporus Most of the mushrooms you see in the stores are different varieties of the same species of mushroom. Even the huge Portobello mushrooms are just more mature regular button mushrooms.

Growing Mushrooms Since mushrooms are heterotrophs, they need food so they are grown on mounds of wheat straw, and horse manure. Spores are then spread on the manure and harvested several times.

Varieties of Agaricus bisporus These mushrooms are common on pizzas, in stir-fries, even as gourmet substitutes for burgers.

Varieties of Agaricus bisporus Americans eat about 4 pounds (2 kg) of mushrooms each year. In the US, over 700 million dollars are made in the mushroom industry each year.