Srijana Dangi1, Sushil Rai2, and Rameshwar Rai2*
1Institute of Applied Sciences, Forest Biomaterial Science and Engineering program; 2Organic Agriculture Program, Madan Bhandari University of Science and Technology(MBUST), Chitlang 44110, Bagmati Province, Nepal
*Corresponding author: rameshwar.rai@mbust.edu.np,rairsansk@gmail.com
Morel mushroom (Morchella sps) is an edible fungus that possesses a unique taste and high nutritional value for the human diet. From the economic point of view, wild forest materials are the main sources of morel cultivation as they need huge amounts of these materials. This review of the domestication of morel mushrooms mainly concentrated on how to improve better cultivation of morels through substrate optimization, microbial interactions, and new production technologies. It entails the key role of microbes present in the inoculants and soil microbiota in enhancing fruiting. Furthermore, it also suggested solutions to overcome constraints such as Paecilomyces penicillatus and Purpureocillium lilacinum disease, yield reduction due to continuous cropping, and heavy metal pollution. Genomics investigations have provided insights into mating systems, heterothallism, and strain variation with a view to strain development and selective breeding. Additionally, innovative techniques such as integration of agroforestry and IoT-based monitoring of the environment for intercropping are considered for possible sustainable production techniques. The economic stability, and yield consistency, constraints still remain despite achieving progress. Reliable domestication will be dependent on the future studies that integrate genetics, microbiome ecology, disease resistance, and technology developments. A multidisciplinary approach could make the morel mushroom farming easier, more economically and ecologically, for all across the globe.