8i MUSHROOMS, HOW TO GROW THEM. 



to spend this time, and undergo the care and trouble 

 and expense, and court a failure by using old spawn ? 

 We ha-ve risks enough with new spawn, let alone old 

 spawn. I do not use any more old spawn, but I have 

 used it often and long enough to be convinced of its 

 general worthlessness, unless preserved with the greatest 

 care. 



How to Distinguish, Good from Poor Spa^vn. — 

 This is a very difficult matter, notwithstanding what 

 people may say to the contrary. If we could positively 

 tell good from bad spawn, we would never use bad 

 spawn, and, therefore, with ordinary care, have very 

 few failures in mushroom-growing; for good spawn is 

 tlie root of success in this business. Spawn differs very 

 mucli in its appearance ; sometimes the bricks show very 

 little appearance of the presence of spawn, and still are 

 perfectly good ; and again, we may get bricks that are 

 pretty well interlaced and clouded with blnisl) white 

 mold or fine threads, and this, too, is good. When the 

 bricks are freely pervaded with pronounced white threads 

 this is no sign that the spawn is bad. Bricks dried as 

 hard as a board may be perfectly good ; so, too, may be 

 those that are comparatively soft. Mushroom spawn 

 should have a decided smell of mushrooms, and what- 

 ever cobweb-like mold may be apparent should be of a 

 fresh bluish white color, and the fine threads clear white. 

 Prominent yellowish threads or veins are a sign that the 

 mycelium had started to gi'ow and been killed. Distinct 

 white mold patches on the surface of the bricks indicate 

 the presence of some other fungous parasite on the mush- 

 room mycelium ; the absence of any mushroom smell in 

 the spawn indicates its worthlessness and that the myce- 

 lium is dead. One familiar with mushroom spawn can 

 tell with considerable certainty "very living" spawn 

 and "very dead" spawn, but I am far from convinced 

 that any one can decide unhesitatingly in the case of 

 middling or weak spawn. 



