Around five years ago, Tariq Ahmad Sofi, a professor at the Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology (SKUAST-K), began exploring the possibility of cultivating Gucchi mushrooms (Morchella) in Kashmir Valley under controlled conditions, drawing inspiration from practices in China.
He initially conducted small-scale experiments, but the effort gained momentum when a PhD scholar at the university developed an interest in mushroom cultivation and joined the research.
After years of sustained work, the team succeeded in standardising cultivation techniques for Gucchi mushrooms under both greenhouse and open-field conditions, transforming a rare wild forest produce into a potentially scalable agri-enterprise.
Read more at The Hindu Business Line
