24 



The Florists* Review 



January 20, 1921 



fanging is characterized by the strawy 

 particles having a white, moldy appear- 

 ance. When turning the pile, care 

 should be taken to shake apart with tlie 

 fork all of the strawy portions. At tne 

 same time the soil that was spread over 

 the pile should be spread aniBiixed all 

 through the manure. After a dfty^or 

 two the pile should again be turned 

 This turning process should be repeated 

 until all the particles have become of 

 a rich coffee-brown color. This will be 

 a week or ten days after the manure is 

 collected, depending upon the season of 

 the year. 



When the condition of the manure 

 has arrived at this stage, no time should 

 be lost in getting it into the beds. Care 

 should be taken, in placing the prepared 

 manure on the shelves or beds, that it is 

 spread smoothly and evenly and well 

 packed down. Not less than eight inches 

 and not more than twelve inches will 

 be found to be the right depth, under 

 ordinary circumstances, for the manure 

 on the shelves or beds. 



Season for Growing Mushrooms. 



The proper season of the year to 

 undertake to grow a crop of mushrooms 

 will depend largely upon the facilities 

 for their growth. In caves underground, 

 where the temperature does not vary 

 much from 55 degrees at any season of 

 the ye^r, they may be grown all the 

 year around. Under the ordinary con- 

 ditions above ground, the fall, winter 

 and spring seasons must be used. Ap- 

 parently a temperature for a few days 

 of 90 degrees will kill the growing 

 spawn. A low temperature, however, 

 does not kill it, as it will start produc- 

 ing again as soon as the air becomes 

 warm. Some growers having large 

 houses, artificially heated, put in batches 

 of manure from the fall until the spring. 

 Some of the beds are producing while 

 others are being made. When the crop 



a small amount of artificial heat, mush- 

 rooms ought to be produced for four 

 months. 



\ Procuring Good Spawn. 



spawn is one of the most im- 

 it of the several important things 

 make up the business of mushroom 

 growing. Unless the spawn is fresh 

 and good, all the other work of prepara- 

 tion goes for nothing. Unfortunately, 

 except by actually testing it in the bed, 

 there has as yet been no way devised 

 to test its viability. The best that can 

 be done is to buy direct from the man- 

 ufacturer. There are, of course, many 

 reliable dealers, but in some cases, un- 

 less tho order is large, it may be filled 

 from some left-over stock. The com- 

 mercial spawn is now generally sold in 

 the form of bricks. These bricks of 

 spawn are usually eight inches long, 

 six inches wide and about one inch 

 thick. They are, in appearance, just 

 brick-shaped pieces of dried cow 

 manure. When they are broken open, 

 however, the white threads of the myce- 

 lium will be seen interwoven with the 

 composition of the brick. In fresh 

 spawn these white threads are prom- 

 inent and easily seen. This fact has 

 been taken by some growers as an in- 

 dication that the spawn is viable and 

 good. It is used for spawning the bed 

 by breaking it into pieces. 



Spawning the Beds. 



The bricks of spawn are usually 

 broken so as to make twelve pieces. 

 The pieces are placed eight inches apart 

 each way. At this rate, about nine 

 bricks would be required for each fifty 

 feet. 



The beds should be spawned when the 

 temperature has receded to about 70 

 degrees. This will probably be ten days 

 or more after the beds are made. In 

 preparation for spawning, the bricks 



For Best Prices Mushrooms Must Be Graded to SUe. 



is to be grown in buildings not espe- 

 cially constructed so that the tempera- 

 ture can be controlled, a study of the 

 seasonal temperatures of the local- 

 ity will indicate the best time to 

 start th^; mushroom beds. Usually 

 from the first of August to the 

 first of January will be the best time 

 under ordinary conditions. Ordinarily 

 it will take from three weeks to a 

 month from the start of preparing the 

 manure till the time to spawn. From 

 spawning time until the first mushrooms 

 appear will be six or eight weeks. So. 

 if the work is started in August, it will 

 be the beginning of November before 

 the beds will get into heavy bearing. 

 By that date the air temperature has 

 usually moderated to 60 degrees and 

 does not again rise above that until 

 March. Thus, in a tight building, with 



of spawn may be put into the mush- 

 room house several daj's before it is 

 time to put it into the beds. In the 

 damp atmosphere of the house the bricks 

 will soften so that they may be easily 

 broken into pieces of the required size. 

 If the beds are hot, the bricks should 

 not be laid directly on the manure, as 

 it may be so hot as to injure the my- 

 celium. On the boards that form the 

 edges of the beds or on a board laid on 

 top of the manure is a suitable place. 

 The first step in the operation of spawn- 

 ing is to break the spawn into the right- 

 sized pieces and lay these eiglit inches 

 apart over the surface of the bed. Then, 

 witli a garden trowel or small hoe, lift 

 the manure and insert the spawn so 

 that the top of each piece is half an inch 

 beneath the surface. After the spawn 

 is in, press the manure firmly around it. 



As soon as all the spawn is set, go 

 carefully over the bed with the back of 

 a spade or some other effective tamper. 

 The bed should be level and smooth 

 when finished. 



Finishing the Beds. 



If the mushroom building is subject 

 to fluctuations in the temperature, or 

 to excessive humidity, it will be well to 

 cover the bed about six inches deep with 

 straw. The straw should be dry and 

 light, so that there wiU not be any 

 danger of its causing a rise of tempera- 

 ture in the bed so as to injure the spawn. 

 About ten days after the bed has been 

 spawned the straw should be removed, 

 and an inch of sifted loam, such as was 

 recommended for mixing with the man- 

 ure, should be spread evenly over the 

 surface. This should be tamped down 

 firmly and smoothly. After the "cas- 

 ing, ' ' or covering with soil, Is finished, 

 the straw may be again spread over the 

 surface. When the crop is ready to 

 pick, the straw can be carefully reinoved 

 and replaced after picking. 



Moisture a<nd Ventilation. 



As already intimated, there should 

 never be currents of air in the mush- 

 room house, but after the beds are made, 

 if there is such an amount of moisture 

 that it stands on the roof or walls, 

 enough ventilation should be given to 

 correct this. If the house is too hot, 

 cool air at night should be let in. 



If the humidity of the atmosphere is 

 right, there will be no need to water 

 until the mushrooms appear. After 

 this, the soil should be kept moderately 

 moist. The water should never be ap- 

 plied with force. In fact, it is much 

 better to apply it in the form of a mist. 

 If a watering can is used, see that 

 the rose has extremely small openings. 

 Keep the surface moist, but avoid soak- 

 ing. Use water at about the same tem- 

 perature as the house or bed. The 

 spraying or sprinkling should be done 

 after the mushrooms have been picked. 



When the mushrooms are ready they 

 should be picked at once. It is well to 

 go over the beds every morning. Pick 

 carefully by giving the stem a twist 

 and a pull at the same time. Cut off 

 the base of the stems. The time to pick 

 is just as the button-shaped top begins 

 to break away from the stem. If they 

 are allowed to open out wide, the under 

 side will lose its delicate pink color and 

 turn black. This lessens -the value of 

 the mushrooms as a table delicacy. 

 Send to market in 1-pound paper car- 

 tons or 4-pound splint baskets. Mush- 

 rooms are sold by the pound. 



Diseases and Pests. 



The mushroom, although a fungus it- 

 self, is not immune from disease, but as 

 yet has not been seriously menaced by 

 disease in this country. One of the most 

 dangerous diseases is "fogging off." 

 This attacks the mushrooms when they 

 are in the pinhead stage and is most 

 troublesome under warm conditions. 

 Keeping the house cool is the best pre- 

 ventive. Careless watering is a fruit- 

 ful source of trouble. Keep the air 

 moist, so as to avoid as much as pos- 

 sible direct application of water to the 

 beds. 



Wood lice and slugs or snails may 

 sometimes cause trouble by eating the 

 mushrooms as they appear. Trap the 

 wood lice in tin cans with dry rubbish 

 in them. The cans may be laid on the 

 bed or let in even with the surface. 



