VEGETABLES MUSHROOM. 173 



surface as before the spawn was put in. Let it remain in this 

 condition for about 10 or 12 days, by which time the spawn 

 will have "run" through the whole bed. Now spread 

 evenly over the surface of the bed nearly 2 inches of fresh 

 loam, firm it down moderately with the back of a spade, 

 and cover up the bed with 3 or 4 inches of hay or straw ; 

 this completes the whole operation of " planting the crop." 

 Nothing now remains to be done, but attention to the 

 proper degrees of heat and moisture. 



If you can control the means of heating, so that the 

 place can be kept uniformly at a temperature of 60, all 

 the better, but if not, it may range from 40 to 60 ; it 

 should never get much below 40, else the bed will be- 

 come cold too quickly, and delay the crop until too late in 

 the season to be profitable. Unless the air of the house 

 has been unusually dry, the Mushrooms will appear before 

 any water is required ; but examination should be made, 

 and if the surface of the bed appears dry, a gentle sprink- 

 ling of water, heated to about 100, must be given. 



With this treatment, beginning in December, our first 

 crop is ready for use in February, and as the Mushrooms 

 do not come up all at once, it takes about three weeks to 

 gather the crop. After this, a slight dressing of fresh 

 soil, of about half an inch in depth, is spread over the bed, 

 again beat down with the spade ; this, gently watered with 

 tepid water when dry, and a second crop of Mushrooms, 

 (often better than the first), is gathered in March. 



To show how a simple oversight in our operations may 

 defeat the whole work, I will state, that in my first attempt 

 at Mushroom growing, I labored for two years without be- 

 ing able to produce a single Mushroom. In my apprentice 



