236 The Profitable Culture of Vegetables. 



Flat Beds. These are made in sheds, barns, cellars, glass- 

 houses, and in fact in any places which afford protection from 

 the weather. The length and width is determined by the space 

 available, but the thickness is regulated by the time of the year 

 and the temperature which can be maintained. Beds made in 

 July and August need not be more than Gin. to 9in. deep; in 

 cold structures from September to end of February they 

 should be made 15in. deep. During the same period in places 

 where the temperature does not fall much below 55 degrees, 

 the depth need not be more than lOin. to 12in., but they should 

 be made a little deeper on the side which comes in contact with 

 an outside wall. In making the bed the manure should be 

 shaken out and well trodden down in successive layers of about 

 Gin. until it has reached the desired depth. When finished it 

 should be uniform in depth, well compacted throughout, and 

 with a level surface. 



Spawning. During the first few days after the beds are 

 made the temperature will rise to a considerable height and 

 will then begin to fall. Sometimes when the bed gets very hot 

 it is necessary to make ventilating holes in it to let off some of 

 the surplus heat as quickly as possible. This is not likely to 

 happen to a flat bed unless made extra thick. To reduce the 

 heat in a ridge bed get an iron bar about lin. in diameter, and 

 make holes along the ridge about 1ft. apart, from the top to 

 within 9in. of the bottom. When the heat has fallen to 80 

 degrees Sin. below the surface the bed is ready for spawning. 

 Each brick of spawn should be broken into eight or ten pieces : 

 very small pieces should be avoided as much as possible as 

 they generally result in small Mushrooms. The spawn is set 

 in the bed in rows 9in. apart and the same distance between 

 the pieces, each row being placed so that the pieces fall opposite 

 the interval between the pieces in the next row. Each piece 

 is buried about its own depth below the surface of the manure. 

 Holes are made in the manure with the left hand and the pieces 

 of spawn are inserted with the right hand, then the manure is 

 pressed tightly round it and all made level again. Never use 

 a dibber to make the holes, as the smooth sides of the hole 

 so made offer an obstacle to the growth of the mycelium. 

 When the spawn is hard and dry, especially in the warm 



