Io66 ■ THE BOOK OF GARDENING. 



occurs in six weeks from the time of spawning. A temperature 

 of 55deg. is the most suitable, and ought not to be much' 

 exceeded. Maintain a moist atmosphere in the structure by 

 damping the floors and walls — not the beds — every morning. 

 When the Mushrooms appear, a good soaking with slightly- 

 warmed water may be given, and as often afterwards as may 

 seem necessary, giving weak liquid-manure, or a handful of salt 

 in a 4gal. can of water when the bed exhibits signs of 

 exhaustion. 



When gathering the Mushrooms it is advisable to twist the 

 stems round gently to detach them from the bed, filling the 

 hole made in the bed with a little soil. If the stems are cut 

 and left in the bed they cause the spawn to decay. 



Very good Mushrooms are often grown in pasture fields by 

 inserting lumps of spawn under the turf at the end of April or 

 early in May, and beating the turf firm over the spawn ; in 

 favourable seasons, and on suitable land, the crop is often 

 enormous. Mushrooms may also be grown in pans (Fig. 683). 



W^oodlice are the chief pests of the Mushroom cultivator, and 

 they are best trapped by half-filling pots with hay and laying 

 them on their sides. Each morning the Woodlice should be 

 shaken out into a vessel of boiling water. 



Mustard and Cress. 



Mustard and Cress are usually employed together, and as 

 their culture is exactly the same they are sown side by side. 

 With a little gentle heat there is no difficulty in having a daily 

 supply all the winter. Simply fill a few boxes with light, rich 

 soil, press level the surface with a piece of board, and sow the 

 seed on the surface, watering well, and not permitting the soil 

 to become dry. By sowing one box of Mustard and another of 

 Cress every three or four days a constant daily supply for a 

 small family is secured. From the beginning of April to the 

 end of September seed sown in the open ground will do very 

 well. 



Onions. 



The ground for this crop should be deeply trenched and 

 liberally manured in the autumn, leaving the surface as rough 

 as possible, to be fully acted upon by the weather. In the 

 early part of March a good sprinkling of soot or ashes from 

 burnt refuse is beneficial, as either of these become well incor- 

 porated w4th the soil when levelling for sowing, which should 

 be done as early in the month as the soil and weather will 

 allow. For main crops the drills should be ift. apart, and not 

 more than lin. deep, sowing thinly the seed of such varieties 

 as Ailsa Craig, Cranston's Excelsior, Bedfordshire Champion, and 

 Carter's Record. When the seedlings have attained a height of 



