78 POPULAR VEGETABLES 



preparation if the best results are to be obtained rain 

 to be kept off ; expose to the air in thin layers in a shed 

 to dissipate moisture without undue fermentation. 

 When this process has been carefully attended to, fer- 

 mentation afterwards, when the manure is formed in a 

 heap as advised, is much less violent and more gradual, 

 thereby reducing the loss of nitrogen by the escape of 

 ammonia to a minimum. In this way not only are 

 heavier crops of better Mushrooms secured, but the 

 beds will last in bearing half as long again as will those 

 formed from manure which has been overheated and 

 put up wet. The latter conditions are undoubtedly 

 accountable for more failures than most people are 

 aware of. We must here mention that those who aspire 

 to grow Mushrooms under artificial conditions such as 

 we are now considering, and who have only a limited 

 quantity of manure to deal with, must not wait until 

 a large heap is collected together sufficient to form a 

 good-sized bed, because if they do that manure first 

 collected would be overspent and practically useless 

 before a good-sized heap could be got together. There- 

 fore the bed must be made up in small sections at a 

 time as the manure is got ready, and this is really an 

 advantage than otherwise, as a moderate and well- 

 sustained supply is secured rather than a glut at one 

 season and scarcity at another. 



How to Form the Beds. The system now under 

 consideration is the one followed in private gardens 

 where a proper house is available for the purpose. 

 The house is generally a lean-to with a north aspect, 



