45^ 



Garden and Forest. 



[Number 455. 



age and habit of growth is concerned. Nevertheless, two of 

 its well-known seedlings, Downing and Smith, are clearly 

 hybrids between R. oxyacanthoides and R. Grossularia, and I 

 have some crosses ot Pale Red by Houghton which show 

 Grossularia ancestry, but the pure Pale Red seedlings do not. 



Downing, which is generally called the standard of excel- 

 lence among the native sorts, is a seedling of Houghton. Its 

 foliage and the size, texture, flavor and thin skin of its fruit 

 indicate its relationship to R. oxyacanthoides, but the color of 

 the fruit, thick spines and thick, scarcely curving, canes indi- 

 cate Grossularia parentage. The opinion that it is a hybrid of 

 R. oxyacanthoides and R. Grossularia is confirmed by a study 

 of its pure seedlings, most of which resemble Downing in 

 habit, and some of them show marked Grossularia character. 



Pearl, another hybrid of Ribes oxyacanthoides and R. Gros- 

 sularia, is from seed ot Downing fertilized by Ashton, an Eng- 

 lish sort. So closely does it resemble Downing that it is diffi- 

 cult to tell the difference between the two, either in bush or in 

 fruit. In some sections it is said to be more vigorous and pro- 

 ductive than Downing, but it has proved less productive so 

 tar as tested here. 



Smith, or Smith's Improved, a seedling of Houghton, has 

 fruit equal to Downing in size, or even larger. The green 

 color ot the fruit and shining upper surface of the leaves, 

 together with other features, indicate that it has originated 

 partly irom Ribes Grossularia. Some ot its crosses with Pale 

 Red also show characters of the same species. 



Mountain is of especial interest since it is the only cultivated 

 variety I know which represents Ribes. Cynosbati, the most 

 common wild species of this and many other sections of New 

 York state. Its tall canes, sprawling branches, the dull brown- 

 ish purple color of the fruit and the very dark green pulp are 

 all Cynosbati characteristics, as are also the beautiful brown 

 and red colors of its autumn foliage, quite unlike the yellow 

 or occasional dull brown tints of the European kinds. 



The fruit, which is very large for a native Gooseberry, has 

 smooth and thick skin, which indicates Grossularia parentage, 

 tor Cynosbati fruit is smaller and the thin skin is usually beset 

 with prickles. The glossy upper surface and somewhat 

 leathery texture of the foliage also indicate its Grossularia 

 parentage, since Ribes Cynosbati has soft pubescent leaves 

 that are not at all leathery, neither glossy. Although this 

 variety is of some interest botanically, it is not productive 

 enough to merit cultivation for its fruit. 



Viewed from the standpoint of the practical fruit grower, the 

 Gooseberries which have been cultivated in this country fall 

 readily into two classes, namely, those which are liable to 

 injury from attacks of the mildew, and those which are 

 not. Although it attacks other species of Ribes, yet in this 

 country the mildew finds all varieties of the European Goose- 

 berry particularly susceptible to its attacks, including, of 

 course, the American-grown seedlings of this species, even 

 though thev are catalogued as American Gooseberries. For 

 this reason the varieties which have found their way into gen- 

 eral cultivation in this country, either like Pale Red, belong 

 purely to a native species, or like Downing, Mountain and 

 Pearl, are hybrids between an American species and the Euro- 

 pean R. Grossularia. Thus it happens that the classification 

 into successful and unsuccessful varieties which practical 

 American fruit growers have felt compelled to accept, follows 

 closely, though, perhaps, unconsciously, the lines defined by 

 botanists long ago for the classification of the species. 



It is now known that by a wise regard forsanitary conditions, 

 and by systematic and thorough use of fungicides, some Euro- 

 pean Gooseberries may be successfully grown in various parts 

 of this country, so that it is reasonable to expect that the fine 

 colored, large and. really excellent fruit of the best English 

 Gooseberries will become more common in American mar- 

 kets than they have been in the past. 



Geneva, N. Y. 



6". A. Beach. 



The Cultivation of Mushrooms. 



IT has always been considered that there was more or less 

 of legerdemain in the successful growing of Mushrooms, 

 and many old-time cultivators made this supposition seem 

 probable by various pretenses which had little foundation in 

 fact. Many people object to eating Mushrooms for fear of 

 spurious varieties which are known to be poisonous, and great 

 care must be exercised when gathering them in the fields, but 

 under cultivation there is no danger whatever. I have never 

 known any other species of fungus to be produced in the 

 Mushroom beds that approached Agaricus campestris near 

 enough in appearance to be mistaken for it, and cultivated 

 specimens may be safely eaten with no fears as to the results. 

 Very recently a popular interest in mycology has sprung'up, 



and there are now two flourishing societies in this state which 

 have meetings and exhibitions for the better study of fungi 

 and their edible species. These meetings and increasing ob- 

 servations by the mass of the people will help to do away with 

 a great deal of the ignorance and superstition about this family 

 ot fungi, and anything that will help to make better known and 

 appreciated these esculents will be a public benefaction. 



Ever since we have begun to grow the Mushroom under 

 the greenhouse benches we have never had to record a total 

 failure, and some of the crops have been most successful. 

 We are exceptionally situated for obtaining material for the 

 beds, and this is a primary requisite, it being essential to col- 

 lect this quickly so as to have enough in bulk and to get the 

 whole in a warm but moderately dry condition before any part 

 of it has lost virtue by becoming cold. It is best to collect all 

 that is possible each morning, throwing out all long straws, 

 and, when sufficient is obtained, letting the heap heat mode- 

 rately, say for two days, before turning it over, and keeping up 

 this while forming another heap of the newer material to be 

 treated separately, making up a bed as fast as each heap is in 

 proper condition — that is, when rank gases have been elimi- 

 nated and excess ot moisture evaporated by warmth and ex- 

 posure. It may be safely considered fit to make up in beds 

 when a handful can be taken up without soiling the hands or 

 moisture felt to be present. One of our mistakes, that was not 

 apparent for some time, was making the beds too deep, and 

 this resulted in overheating when the beds were made up. 

 But as the Mushrooms were produced only about the outer 

 edges of the beds or where the new bed was joined on, 

 this led to the discovery of the fault. Now we never make a 

 bed more than ten inches deep at theback, and slopinggently 

 to six inches at the front of a four-foot bed. Under these condi- 

 tions the temperature never seems to get beyond control, and 

 rarely exceeds 100 degrees, Fahrenheit. 



The firmer the beds are made up the less violent the heat 

 at first, and the longer it will last, and it will produce quicker 

 returns. A short-handled mallet is useful in compacting the 

 beds. We wait until the maximum temperature has been 

 reached, and spawn when the temperature isfallingat about 95 

 degrees, and add a coating of fresh loam a day or two after, with 

 water as often as necessary to keep the surface moist, always 

 using tepid water to prevent chilling the beds. If it is found 

 that the heat rises to an undesirable degree, a watering will 

 often cool it down sufficiently, but should the heat get beyond 

 100 degrees, either before or after spawning, it is better to take 

 the whole out and make it over rather than risk a failure. 



A good quality of the spawn is essential to success, but not 

 half the failures attributed to spawn of inferior quality rightly 

 1 >elong there. For the last two years we have been very success- 

 iul in gettingsome that was really good, with no traces of myce- 

 lium that had started into premature growth. Always avoid 

 spawn that has a growth of white threads on the bricks, as this 

 is an evidence ot premature germination of the mycelium. This 

 is what ought to take place when it is planted in the beds, but it 

 is too often induced by improper conditions before it reaches 

 the planter. When one bed is made up and another is about 

 to be commenced, we take enough bricks of spawn and lay 

 them out on the top of the bed and turn every second day or 

 so. This renders the bricks less dry, so that they are more 

 easily broken, and rapid growth begins as soon as planted, 

 and a week or two is saved in bringing up the crop. 



Nitrate of soda is an excellent stimulant for Mushroom beds 

 when they seem to be past bearing. A partial drying off, and 

 then a good soaking with a weak dilution of nitrate, will start 

 up a good second growth that will sometimes equal the first. 



Our beds are formed under the greenhouse benches in a 

 structure where Chrysanthemums and Carnations are grown, 

 and the temperature of the house is kept at 50 during the 

 winter. This suits the crop well, and when in bearing a cloth 

 is tacked about the bed to keep it dark and give more even 

 conditions as to moisture and heat ; that is, the heat generated 

 by the beds themselves will be held, and if the temperature 

 chances to fall below 70 before the crop is well up, a good 

 covering of hay will bring the heat up to the surface and raise it 

 several degrees. Sudden fluctuations in temperature are in 

 this way easily avoided. 



There is no better time than the present to start a bed. Flies 

 are very troublesome in the structure from early formed 

 plantings, but from this time on there will be no trouble from 

 them, and if an airy shed or barn floor is available for the prep- 

 aration of the manure no great difficulty need be anticipated 

 in the production of plenty of Mushrooms during winter, when 

 they are always a welcome addition to the short list of avail- 

 able table vegetables. . 



South Lancaster, Mass. -C. (J. Urpet. 



