MUSHROOM GROWING 



the various processes in the preparation of 

 the compost should be carried through as 

 promptly as possible and the conditions kept 

 favorable. If the mushroom house has been 

 cleaned to begin with, and the other precau- 

 tions mentioned are observed, it is unlikely 

 that this insect will be a cause of failure. 

 However, mites have been treated fairly 

 successfully by placing upon the beds scraps 

 of cooked meat and then occasionally col- 

 lecting these and dropping them into boil- 

 ing water, afterwards returning them again 

 to the bed. 



Springtails. These little insects some- 

 times appear upon the surface of the beds 

 in colonies so populous that affected areas 

 seem literally alive with the tiny gray-black 

 creatures, hopping in every direction, when 

 disturbed, more actively than "wrigglers" 

 in a tub of water. I have found these in- 

 sects particularly numerous — and frequently 

 a cause of failure — where mushrooms are 

 grown in damp caves, and where the rules 

 of sanitation are grossly violated. These 



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