590 MUSHROOMS, EDIBLE AND OTHERWISE 



Of course, the above rules are subject to modification according to the con- 

 dition of the manure, its age and previous handling. 



SPAWNING. The manure, having been properly composted, is spread 

 evenly on the floor or shelves and firmly compressed in beds about ten inches 

 in depth. The temperature of the bed is then too high for spawning and will 

 usually rise still higher. It should be carefully watched with the aid of a special 

 or mushroom thermometer. When the temperature of the beds has fallen to 

 about 75 or 8o, they may be spawned. The beds must be spawned when the 

 temperature falls, never when it rises. The bricks of spawn are broken into 

 eight or ten pieces, and these pieces are inserted from one to two inches below 

 the surface, about nine to twelve inches apart. The bed is then firmly com- 

 pressed. An advantage is found in breaking and distributing the spawn over 

 the surface of the bed a few days before spawning; this allows the mycelium to 

 absorb some moisture and swell to some extent. If the bed is in proper con- 

 dition it should not require watering for several weeks. 



Figure 501. Brick Spawn, Pure Culture. 



CASING THE BEDS. As soon as the spawn is observed to "run," or 

 from eight days to two weeks, the beds are "cased" or covered with a layer of 

 about one inch of light garden loam, well screened. The loam should be slightly 

 moist, and free from organic matter. The beds should now be watched and 

 should not be allowed to evaporate or dry out. 



PICKING. Mushrooms should appear in from five to ten weeks after 

 spawning, and the period of production of a good bed ranges from two to four 

 months. In picking the mushrooms an intelligent hand will carefully twist it 

 from the soil and fill the hole left in the bed with fresh soil. Pieces of roots or 

 stems should never be allowed to remain in the beds, otherwise decay might set 



