Mushroom Growing, 345 



It slioiild be a dark brown colour mixed with white and should feel 

 unctuous, elastic, and moist, but should not leave any moisture in 

 the hand when squeezed. If during* the process of curing, the manure 

 becomes too dry, it may be sprinkled with water, but owing- to 

 the fact that watering lends to increase the rapidity of fermentation 

 and the elevation of the temperature, aud that spawn rots in very 

 wet material, it should be used with caution. Some growers prefer 

 to add soil to the manure in the proportion of 1 part to 8 or 9 

 parts manure, but this is not generally considered necessary unless 

 it is wished to increase the bulk of the material. 



Beddinrj and Spawning. — As soon as the manure is ready it is 

 made into beds. These may be iii the '" ridge " formation, which 

 allows of a big surface extent, l)ut the inore general way is to 

 make flat beds. These may be of any size convenient to handle, 

 and should be from 8 to 18 inches deep. The manure is compressed 

 as firmly as possible, and the beds are left till the temperature is 

 about 80° F., when they are ready for spawning. 



The point at which the beds are ready for planting the spawn 

 seems to be one of the most important and critical features of the 

 business. The manure musi; be properly cured and the temperature 

 of the beds (tested with a thermometer) must not be above 90° and 

 not below 70° F. There is a diversity of opinion about the optimum 

 temperature, but it is probably about 80° F. 



Spawning consists in planting pieces of living spawn into the 

 prepared beds. The " bricks " are broken up into pieces about 2 to 

 3 inches in diameter, and these are planted 2-3 inches {some growers 

 prefer more) deep, 7-9 inches apart, in rows about 9 inches apart. 

 The surface is then again made firm, and the beds are left for a 

 further 3-14 days (according to the rapidity with which the spawn 

 grows), after which they are covered with a 2-inch layer of finely 

 screened, slightly moist loam, which is also firmly pressed down. 

 Some growers plant the spawn at once into the beds; others, however, 

 break it up and leave the pieces on the top of the beds for a few 

 days before planting, so that they can absorb a certain amount of 

 moisture. The beds are then left as they are; some growers cover 

 them with a layer of straw ov hay, which helps to keep in the mois- 

 ture. If the beds dry cut too much they should be lightly watered 

 with lukewarm water. 



Pickmg and Marketing. — Mushrooms should appear 5-10 weeks 

 after spawning, and should continue growing for from two to four 

 months. The crop varies, but a good mushroom bed should yield 

 from lh-2 lb. per square foot. 



Picking should start when the mushrooms are in the button 

 stage, i.e. before the veils have broken. The stem should be twisted 

 not broken or pulled from the soil, and the hole filled in with fresh 

 soil, otherwise decay might set up in remaining pieces of stalk and 

 spread through the bed. 



Mushrooms for the market should be sorted to size and colour, 

 removed of all soil, and packed according to weight in baskets or 

 boxes. They will not keep for any length of time, so should be 

 dispatclied as soon as possible after packing*. 



Old, Beds. — It is not practicable to raise mushrooms on old beds. 

 The old material can be used for garden purposes, and should be 

 removed after each crop and the house or shed, etc., thoroughly 

 cleaned before new beds are made. 



