312 Culture of Mushrooms 



Art. X. On the Culture of Mushrooms in Melon Beds. By Mr. 

 John Collier, Gardener to Edmund Woods, Esq., Shopwick, 

 near Chichester. 



Sir, 



Having seen, in Vol. VII. p. 731., a letter from Brighton, 

 signed J. S., in which allusion is made to a mushroom of un- 

 usual size raised by me, I beg leave to state that the mush- 

 room in question measured in circumference 3 ft. 74 in., while 

 its weight was 2 lbs. 1 oz. ; nor was this the only large mush- 

 room on my bed, as many measured the same in circumference 

 as the above, though none of them were of exactly the same 

 weight. As J. S. expresses a wish to learn some particulars 

 regarding the process pursued by me in raising this mush- 

 room, I am induced to trouble you with the following brief 

 account of my method : — 



The bed in which my large mushrooms were raised was 

 an old melon bed, in a brick-built pit. About the middle of 

 July, a bed of long and short stable dung (fresh from the 

 stable), which had only gone through a slight course of fer- 

 mentation, was made in the above pit, for the twofold purpose 

 of raising melons and mushrooms ; the bed was spawned in 

 the usual way, but not till about a fortnight after the melons 

 were ridged out ; as, if done earlier, the bed would be too hot 

 to receive the spawn. As soon as the bed was spawned, a 

 quantity of stiff yellow loam, mixed with a little half-decayed 

 leaf mould, was laid on it to the depth of 1 2 in., for the melons 

 to grow in, and gently trodden down : this I have always found 

 to be the best compost for mushrooms. The melons ripened 

 about the end of September; and when all were gathered, 

 which was about the end of October, the whole of the bed 

 was cleared of the old plants, and about 3 in. of the mould 

 removed from the surface, thus leaving mould to the depth of 

 9 in. for the mushrooms. The bed was then well watered, 

 and again at the latter end of November : but no more water 

 was given all the winter, save a little which might drain from 

 a quantity of potted geraniums, which were placed on the bed 

 for protection during the winter months. About the middle 

 of the ensuing February the mushrooms made their appear- 

 ance in the part of the bed next the wall. The geraniums 

 were immediately removed, to allow the mushrooms space to 

 grow all over the entire bed, when several pots were found 

 lying on their sides, being pushed aside by the mushrooms 

 boldly protruding through the earth underneath them. 

 Though some of the mushrooms had only just made their 

 appearance, still many measured 9 in. in circumference. In 



