CHAPTER XXL 
THE MUSHROOM. 
“ Ye elves of hills, brooks, standing lakes, and groves ; 
And ye that on the sands with printless feet 
Do chase the ebbing Neptune, and do fly him 
When he comes back ; you demi-puppets that 
By moonshine do the green sour ringlets make, 
Whereof the ewe not bites, and you wdrose pastime 
Is to make midnight mushrooms 
Tempest , V., 1. 
S HIS delicious fungus will often come without being 
asked, as on old rubbish heaps, and amongst cu- 
cumbers and melons; but when formally invited, it 
is capricious, and, at times, somewhat impolite. Mushrooms 
are very easily cultivated on paper, and when you purchase 
spawn of a dealer you will probably be favoured with printed 
instructions for growing them on window sills, in chimney 
corners, and perhaps on the top of the eight-day clock that 
makes a husky throbbing in the entrance-hall. These toy 
systems will not obtain much attention here, for the simple 
reason that this book is intended to promote work rather 
than play, and a miniature mushroom bed is more delusive 
than the moonshine that promotes the growth of fairy-rings 
in the poetical world. 
The Mushroom, Agaricus campestris, may be studied to 
advantage as it appears from time to time in the fields. For 
several years in succession we may search for them in vain, 
but at last there comes a hot, dry summer, and instantly, on 
the occurrence of showers, the pastures will be covered with 
mushrooms. Pleat promotes the “running,” that is, the diffu- 
sion of the spawn, and a very moderate amount of moisture 
suffices to bring up the plant. The cultivation consists in 
imitating as nearly as possible the conditions that promote 
the growth of mushrooms in the meadow and by the roadside. 
The soil must contain a sufficiency of nitrates and phosphates, 
hence fresh short stable dung and good turfy loam are im- 
portant aids. Darkness is regarded as essential, but the out- 
