Cottage-Gardening adapted to Scotland. 315 



covering keeps the soil moist, especially when much exposed to 

 the air. These observations may appear at variance with the 

 fact, that mushrooms spring up in the fields in showery weather; 

 but there is a difference between spawn in a bed of manure 

 which retains water, and spawn in the open soil. 



It is doubtful in what mushroom spawn originates. I do 

 not mean such as we employ for mushroom beds, for this 

 appears to be merely the roots of mushrooms, resembling fine 

 white threads with small knots. It is the common notion that 

 this spawn proceeds from animal deposits ; but mushrooms, 

 like more perfect plants, do in reality produce seed. This is 

 said to be ascertained by placing a sheet of white paper under a 

 of the mushroohroom ; the seed will fall upon it from the gills 

 ull-grown musm like fine dust. This seed is carried about by 

 the wind, and eaten by animals with their food. Some may be 

 unwilling to believe this, because the manure from horses fed 

 on grass where mushrooms abound does not produce mush- 

 rooms equal to that from horses fed on hay and corn. To this I 

 reply, that the greater fermentation in the stomachs of horses 

 eating green food is more likely to destroy the mushroom seed. 

 The same may be said of beds made of their manure, which 

 often destroy the spawn. What is here advanced is no way 

 contradicted by the fact of mushrooms springing from decayed 

 vegetables, for the seed may easily have been mixed with them, 

 and the growth accelerated by the slight fermentation which pro- 

 duced the decay of the vegetables. Some imagine that animal 

 manure will produce mushrooms independently of any admixture 

 of their seed ; but this is as unreasonable as to believe that soil 

 will produce weeds without seed, or that putrid animal matter 

 will engender maggots without eggs having been previously 

 therein deposited. — Cossey Gardens, May 12. 1842. 



P.S. To the experienced mushroom-grower I have hei'e 

 mentioned nothing new, but to the inexperienced something 

 which may perhaps be of use to him. 



Art. IX. Cottage-Gardening adapted to Scotland. By Peter 



Mackenzie. 



[The following article was written at our request for the Supplement to the 

 Encyclopaedia of Cottage, Farm, and Villa Architecture, &c, in which we origi- 

 nally intended to give a chapter on Cottage- Gardening ; but, on more mature con- 

 sideration, we thought it would be unsuitable for that work. The publication 

 of Mr. Mackenzie's excellent paper will enable gentlemen's gardeners to give 

 instructions to the cottagers on the estates of their employers, with less trouble 

 than they would have had without such a comprehensive remembrancer.] 



It is full time that the rural population of this country were made aware of 

 the many enjoyments they might possess if they would only bestir themselves 



