CULTUEE OF MUSHEOOMS. 



245 



retaining the moisture. "^Tiere a certain and constant 

 supply is required, the houses must be warmed by 

 flues or hot- water pipes, the artificial heating media 

 beiag needful to keep up the necessary amount of 

 heat, and to insure such dampness in the air in con- 

 nection with it as is congenial to the crops, and this 

 is insured by frequently damping over flues or pipes 

 with tepid water, so as to cause a dense steam to 

 pervade the house. This crop may also be grown in 

 cellars, bins, or boxes, during the winter months, with 

 the minimum temperature above referred to main- 

 tained. 



All forms of enclosed structures are only suitable 

 for winter culture, however. All beds made up 

 during the months of May to July, inclusive, must, 

 therefore, be built 



out of doors, or in -s=^^- 

 very cool cellars. 

 Not because they 

 will not succeed in 

 bearing crops, but 



owing to the fact -=^- 



that all produce 

 formed in enclosed 

 and covered struc- 

 tures during the 

 summer months is 

 so infested with 

 maggots internally 

 as to be absolutely 

 useless. Practice 

 may probably dis- 

 cover a remedy for 

 this drawback, but 



until such time as it does, all attempts at such cul- 

 ture must be abandoned. 



Beds formed, however, out of doors in the above 

 months prove most successful, giving abundance of 

 very meritorious produce. It is well to bear certain 

 facts in mind when selecting a site for summer 

 beds. The situation should have for its base a cer- 

 tain amount of natural dryness, and be one not likely 

 to be subject to the inflow of water, as the result of 

 heavy rains. Some back corner beyond observation, 

 under trees having moderate heads of foliage to 

 save too much drip from heavy rains, would be 

 suitable, though it will be well to have it contiguous 

 to the water-supply. An empty pit, not required for 

 other uses, would suffice, and the under- stage floor 

 of a glass structure would suit during the winter 

 months. 



Having sufiiciently explained what are the most 

 convenient places adapted to the formation of Mush- 

 room beds, we return to the materials prepared and 

 ready for use. 



In-door beds, which may be made between the 



Tig. 2.— Cakes of Masbroom Spawn. 



months of August and IMay, should not be less than 

 one foot in depth of material. To insure this it is 

 best to place a board or boards, attached to firm up- 

 rights, one foot or fourteen inches in depth, on all 

 outer sides, where any bed does not rest against a 

 wall or partition. 



This is essential, from the fact that the materials 

 require to be of an equal depth throughout of one 

 foot, and must be trodden and beaten down as firmly 

 and evenly as j)ossible. 



Along with the materials previously jpi'epared a 

 quantity of stiff fibrous yellow loam should also be 

 secured. Place a layer of straw over the floor first, 

 and upon it another layer of the coarsest, or straw- 

 litter portion, of the materials prepared, and again 



cover these over 

 with a layer of the 

 material in bulk. 

 These layers will 

 raise the space 

 allotted to the bed 

 up to about 0]ie- 

 half its height. 

 Sprinkle next over 

 this mass a thin 

 layer of the loam, so 

 that it falls in be- 

 tween the material 

 and partly covers it 

 over. Add another 

 layer of material, 

 then just another 

 sprinkling of loam, 

 continuing thus 

 until the space within the boards has a heap of loose 

 materials within it, which rises some six inches 

 higher than what is to be the height of the bed 

 when well beaten down. Thrust a thin long stick 

 to its base in the centre of this heap for a test of 

 the action of heat within it, and let the whole remain 

 for two or three days. 



After the lapse of this time the materials should be 

 again slightly fermenting, and a nice warmth should 

 prevail within them, which will communicate itself to 

 the test-stick, by the withdrawal of which its extent 

 can be ascertained. Should the heat be great, as is 

 occasionally the case when the materials are damp, 

 the bed must remain for another day or two, for it to 

 moderate. Then tread down evenly and firmly, and 

 with beater or rammer make the whole as uniformly 

 firm as possible. The test -stick must be again 

 inserted, and a day or two allowed to pass before 

 more is done. After which, if the internal heat of 

 the bed does not exceed 70° it may be spawned. 



In the event of the heat exceeding this, more time 

 must elapse before spawning. On the other hand. 



