SUMMARY
Mushroom cultivation generates a large volume of SMS (spent mushroom substrate), which needs to be properly discarded to avoid contamination of new production cycles. However, SMS is a rich substrate, and can be used to produce vegetable seedlings. The present study evaluated the feasibility of using SMS of Agaricus bisporus as substrate for production of sweet pepper seedlings. The culture substrate was composed of sugar cane bagasse, horse manure, rice straw, soybean meal, chicken bed, urea, potassium chloride, simple superphosphate and gypsum. After cultivation, the SMS was homogenized, wet and composted. The substrate thus processed is the SMS of A. bisporus. The substrate Carolina II® was used as control. The following treatments were evaluated: T1- 100% Carolina II; T2 - 25% SMS + 75% Carolina II; T3-50% SMS + 50% Carolina II; T4- 75% SMS + 25% Carolina II and T5- 100% SMS). Seedling and germination characteristics were evaluated. The best germination parameters were observed with the treatment containing 50% of SMS, compared to the commercial substrate. However, for the quality parameters of the seedlings, the best results were obtained with 100% SMS treatment. Therefore, the use of different SMS percentages for the production of pepper seedlings is an alternative to reduce the production cost. The treatment with 100% SMS presented the best DQI values, as it produced vigorous and better quality pepper seedlings.