234 



MUSHROOM CULTURE SIMPLIFIED. 



A piece of spawn which appears in filaments 

 or fibres, is no lunger applicable to a mush- 

 room bed; it may produce a mushroom 

 in itself, but can serve no other purpose. 

 The spawn that is to be inserted in a bed, 

 and to receive its development there, must 

 not be gone so far ; but should only have 

 the appearance of indistinct white mould. 



The spawn being in right condition, the 

 beds are next to be considered. I have gene- 

 rally made them in a shed, against the wall, 

 sloping from the wall, downwards, about 

 two feet high at the back, and perhaps a 

 little less than one foot in front. The ma- 

 terials for the bed are horse-dung mixed 

 with litter, such as is commonly used for 

 hot-beds; dry leaves may be added, or the 

 greater part, if not the entire bed, may con- 

 sist of leaves. I do not employ the dung 

 fresh, but after it has lain on a dung-hill, 

 and has been frequently turned and well 

 worked. There must be no rank heat 

 in it for the spawn would be killed by an 

 excess of warmth. The temperature of the 

 bed should be between 50 and 60 degs. 

 From 52 degs. to 55 degs. may be quite 

 sufficient. "When the temperature is re- 

 duced to a proper state, the spawn is in- 

 serted. If the bed happens to be dry, I 

 put a layer of moist manure, of the same 

 quality from the dung-hill, upon the spawn; 

 or if, on the other hand, the bed be too 



moist, I put a layer of dryer manure over it 

 these layers I make about two inches thick. 

 The mode of spawning is the usual one; 

 namely, the bricks are broken into small 

 pieces, which are inserted at three or four 

 inches distance from one another. The beds 

 are earthed over about one inch and a half 

 thick, and ultimately covered with hay of 

 different thickness, according to the state of 

 the season. I have never made use of fire- 

 heat ; but always succeeded in regulating 

 the temperature of my beds by means of 

 covering. I scarcely ever have occasion to 

 water the beds, owing to the materials of 

 which they are composed. 



The produce from beds of this description 

 has been ample, and the quality of the mush- 

 rooms excellent, rich, and ■Well-flavoured; 

 they are of great size and thickness, when 

 suffered to grow ; but medium sized ones 

 are best. They yield abundance of juice 

 when dressed, or prepared for catchup. 

 There is no doubt that their quality depends 

 upon the manner in which they are nour- 

 ished; if they are meagerly fed, their fla- 

 vour and substance will be poor in propor- 

 tion. Thence artificial mushrooms are, 

 generally, richer and higher flavoured than 

 those which grow naturally; and, again, 

 among the artificial produce, those will sur- 

 pass which are reared on large and deep 

 beds. — Turner's Florist and Fruitist. 



DO ANTS PREY UPON APHIDES ?— ARE HEDGEHOGS USEFUL 



IN GARDENS? 



No ; but casual observers are 'led to believe 

 so from seeing them busily engaged, running 

 up and down plants and trees, which are 

 infested with aphides. Now, if those who 

 hold the above opinion, were to look a little 

 closer into the matter, they would see that 

 ants do not devour aphides, but are lured 

 by the honey-dew, or sweet juices which 

 they emit, and of which they are extremely 

 fond; and, indeed, some of them seeui to 

 entirely subsist on that kind of food. This 

 accounts for the number of ants seen running 

 about on trees and bushes, and any plant 

 on which the aphides have taken up their 

 abode. And the most knowing of those 

 industrious little fellows do not wait for the 

 aphides to emit the sweet juices, but actually 

 suck it from them at pleasure, hence they 

 are termed by Kirby and Spence, the " ants 

 milch cattle." Some ants, which do not 

 roam far from their nest, actually carry off 

 a dark species of aphis to their nests, and 

 keep them there for milkiug, the aphides 



finding nourishment from the roots of 

 grasses, &c. 



Various recipes have been given, experi- 

 ments tried, and stratagems resorted to 

 for the purpose of exterminating the nume- 

 rous tribes of insects troublesome to the 

 gardener ; and I think, however tender a 

 person's feelings may be on this point, he 

 must admit that, when any of the quad- 

 ruped, or insect tribe, injurious to man, 

 overstep their bounds, take up their abode 

 in our houses, congregate in thousands in our 

 conservatories, together with a hundred and 

 one other annoyances, they become a nui- 

 sance, and, as such, must be cleared away. 

 But, for man to molest, and to entirely destroy 

 any of God's creatures in their own haunts 

 and homes, is both cruel and sinful, and 

 shews at once the bad heart of him, whom 

 the good Cowper would not call his 

 " friend." 



However, I do not know that ants injure 

 vegetation by running up and down the 



