SPAWNING AND AFTER-TREATMENT. 37 



thin and spongy enough to be immediately impregnated 

 with the moist warmth of the beds, takes quickly 

 and well. As to any particular mode of inserting the 

 spawn, little need be said ; if the bed be beaten so 

 hard as many recommend, and which I do not believe to 

 be at all necessary, a dibber will be required to insert 

 the spawn ; if not, it may be readily inserted with a 

 trowel or with the hand. It is a good plan to use a 

 mixture of two kinds of spawn. 



Soil. 



As regards the kind of soil used in earthing, it is not 

 of nearly so much importance as is generally supposed ; 

 almost any soil will do ; but those having heaps of good 

 maiden loam laid by for gardening purposes will prefer to 

 use a coating of that. I believe that any ordinary garden 

 soil would do, and feel certain that it is a mistake to 

 bestow the least trouble on procuring any particular kind 

 of soil from a distance. The beds in the caves around 

 Paris are covered over with a white putty-like substance, 

 which would be sufficient to shake the nerves of any 

 British mushroom-grower accustomed to his coatings of 

 mellow loam. It is simply the fine rubbish from the 

 stone breakage moistened, and smoothly and firmly 

 pressed over the beds. We, if shown this on a bed that 

 had failed, would assuredly attribute it to the " stufF'' 



