MUSHROOM GROWING 



to make his own spawn satisfactorily unless 

 he is prepared to get the necessary training, 

 and look complacently upon his first fail- 

 ures. A brief description of methods is in- 

 cluded here, not with the idea of teaching 

 the reader how to make spawn, but rather 

 with the view of giving him some general 

 information about the process, so that he 

 may perhaps better appreciate both the ne- 

 cessity of good spawn and the reasons why 

 he is justified in demanding good quality 

 and tested varieties. Before discussing the 

 newer methods it may be well to indicate 

 first, however, the empirical procedure 

 which prevailed in England, France, and 

 elsewhere before pure culture methods 

 were introduced. 



A chance method. From the earliest 

 records obtainable regarding mushroom 

 culture, it appears that the grower de- 

 pended upon a ^^spontaneous" or ^'native" 

 occurrence of spawn in pastures, in compost 

 piles, or elsewhere as a means of starting 

 his cultures. He was forced to use this 



92 



