Guide to the Mushrooms 37 



How TO Collect Mushrooms and How to 

 Prepare Them for the Table. 



The equipment for a mushroom liunt is 

 simple, consisting of two splint baskets 

 which may be obtained at a grocers for five 

 or ten cents ; one basket to be used for spe- 

 cimens selected for analvsis, the other for 

 the mushrooms desired for the table; sev- 

 eral small tin or paper l)oxes for fragile 

 specimens ; an ordinary kitchen knife ; sev- 

 eral sheets of tissue paper with which to 

 wrap delicate specimens. Ferns and brakes 

 make one of the best material to pack about 

 the specimens. Place a generous layer on 

 the bottom of the basket, then when a layer 

 of mushrooms is completed, cover them 

 with ferns, and continue till the basket is 

 filled; the ferns are so light that the mush- 

 rooms are never crushed, and the moisture 

 tends to keep the mushrooms fresh. It is a 

 good plan to carry a note-book and several 

 loose sheets for data. In the note book, re- 

 cord the date, name of species, under the 

 head of the locality, which gives one an ex- 

 cellent guide book to mushroom haunts. 



