THE CULTIVATION OF MUSHROOMS 



1381 



of judgment in picking. To satisfy the 

 general demands of our markets at the 

 present time it is not recommended to 

 take the buttons; yet if there is a fancy 

 trade for these it should he met. Little 

 or no gain in weight occurs in the mush- 

 room, however, after the veil begins to 

 break, so that mushrooms should not be 

 left after this time. Flat tops are a 

 third-grade article, but these, as well as 

 all defective mushrooms, should be sed- 

 ulously removed from the bed every day. 



In picking, grasp the mushroom by the 

 cap (a large one by both cap and stem), 

 twisting it to remove it easily from the 

 soil. Where the mushrooms come up in 

 large united clusters, it will be best to 

 cut them, in order not to disturb the my- 

 celial connections of all. Some good 

 growers practice "cutting'* throughout, 

 but the stubs must decay and are a 

 source of danger. After all good mush- 

 rooms from a cluster have been taken, 

 remove any fleshy spawn masses adhering 

 and add fresh loam. 



As they are picked, the mushrooms are 

 put into shallow baskets and taken to a 

 sorting and packing table. The stems are 

 cut off and any adhering loam is brushed 

 from the cap. It is true that mushrooms 

 keep somewhat better if the stub is left 

 attached and the loam removed by rub-* 

 bing, but except in special cases this 

 procedure is not to be recommended. It 

 is not necessary to cut the stem oE short, 

 but the market demands that there shall 

 be few long shanks. 



For the best trade it is desirable to 

 "sort" the mushrooms, placing only those 

 of nearly the same size in the same pack- 

 ages. It is certainly not well to pack to- 

 gether "broilers" and buttons, if this can 

 be avoided. Defective mushrooms should 

 invariably be thrown out. Mushrooms 

 should be treated as a j&rst-grade product 

 in every way, and therefore the package 

 must be attractive. If the time involved 

 in shipment is not to be very long, they 

 may be put into five-pound splintwood 

 baskets or they may be packed in two- 

 pound boxes arranged in crates as pre- 

 pared for fruit. Shipments may also be 

 made in boxes of sizes demanded by the 



general or private trade. Baskets afford 

 excellent ventilation, yet boxes are often 

 to be preferred. If the latter are lined 

 with a blue paraffin or oiled paper, a good 

 color contrast will result and the package 

 will be made much more attractive. 



Market Prices 



The prices paid for mushrooms in 

 American markets are unusually variable. 

 Perhaps it is fair to say that one should 

 consider from 35 to 50 cents per pound a 

 good average price. In many cities or 

 towns 30 cents would be as much as could 

 be obtained. On the other hand, a price 

 of 75 cents is frequently paid. The un- 

 usual quotation of $1 or more is not to 

 be expected. It is true that for a fine 

 grade of mushrooms such prices are paid 

 to retailers by the fancy trade and dur- 

 ing special seasons or for special occa- 

 sions. The grower may well look for the 

 time, however, when the market demands 

 will support a generous supply at a con- 

 stant but fair price. 



The Period of Prodnction 



Under favorable circumstances, a bed 

 may come into bearing within six weeks. 

 It usually requires, however, a longer 

 period, and eight weeks may more nearly 

 represent the average conditions. If the 

 conditions have been variable, and espe- 

 cially if at times a very low temperature 

 has prevailed, bearing may be still fur- 

 ther delayed. Again, the period of pro- 

 duction or the profitable "life" of a suc- 

 cessful bed may vary greatly, ranging 

 from five weeks to as many months. As 

 a rule, a bed which produces fine heavy 

 mushrooms will bear longer than one 

 which produces plants of a lighter weight. 

 Many growers think that there is profit 

 in a bed which yields one-half pound per 

 square foot of surface area. One should 

 not be satisfied with less than this, and 

 if the best conditions prevail this yield 

 is far below what should be obtained. 

 Two pounds per square foot Is an excel- 

 lent yield and some of our growers re- 

 port this amount. Some of the spawn 

 prepared by the Department of Agricul- 

 ture has also given a yield equal to this 

 maximum. "When the conditions for 

 mushroom growing may be so faithfully 



