236 
THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE OF AMERICA 
GROWING MUSHROOMS OUT OF DOORS. 
M^ 
USHROOMS can be grown successfully out of 
doors as they can in houses or under the protection 
of sheets ; but it is a crop that the grower must take spe- 
cial pains in preparing for, or failure will be the result. 
Mushrooms may be grown in meadows by inserting pieces 
of the spawn in the turf at distances of about 6 to 7 
feet apart. The proper way to do this, is to cut a hole 
about one foot deep and one foot wide in the turf, taking 
care to save the top sod to place down again, says a writ- 
er in Canadian Horticulturist. 
Fill up the hole with fresh horse manure and the 
short, littery straw which accompanies it in ecjual quan- 
tities. The manure should be exposed to the weather 
for a fortnight for the purpose of drying, and must be 
protected from rain. At the end of this period put it up 
in a good-sized heap to ferment. Open it out in about 
eightdays to let out foul steam, then put up again for 
eight davs, and open afterwards in the same manner in 
A Bountiful Outdoor Crop of Mushrooms. 
another eight days. The manure then will be ready to 
place in the holes and the spawn can be inserted in it. 
When filling the holes with manure, bear in mind that 
room must be left for the sod to be placed back at the 
same level as it was before. Press the manure into the 
holes as hard as it is possible to do so, and always bear 
in mind it must be in a fairly dry condition. 
Break each cake of spawn with the hands into about 
a dozen equal parts, burying one piece in the manure 
in each hole, using also the fragments which may hap- 
pen to fall from pieces. Plant deep enough to allow a 
quarter of an inch of manure to cover the spawn ; then 
place over the manure half an inch of the soil which came 
out of the hole, pressing it hard down, and finishing by 
placing the sod of earth with the grass on back in its 
place, treading it firmly down. The best time to do this 
is in the month of July. 
For mushroom beds out of doors the manure is pre- 
pared in the same manner, but it must be from corn- 
fed horses. The beds should be placed in some well- 
sheltered, shady position, as mushrooms are difficult to 
produce during the summer months on account of the 
heat then usual!)' prevailing: therefore, have the beds 
placed where they can be kept shady and cool. They 
should be built in round-topped ridges 23-4 feet wide and 
the same in height. 
In building, tread down as firmly as possible. Insert 
a thermometer in the bed about eight inches deep as 
soon as it is completed. The heat will probably rise to 
about 90 degs. F. in the course of about nine days, after 
which it will begin to fall. Immediately it falls to 75 
degs. it will be time to spawn the bed. 
The spawn should be prepared in the same way as for 
the turf, and the pieces inserted 10 inches apart all over 
the surface of the bed. The beds must be protected from 
rain by covering with straw, mats or some such material. 
In the course of a week after the spawn has been inserted 
it will start to run, meaning that tiny white threads will 
radiate from it into the manure, and a sort of mildewy 
mould appear round it. It will now be time to apply a 
coating of loamy soil to the surface of the bed to the 
depth of about half an inch when well beaten down hard 
with the back of the spade. The work is now completed, 
excepting that the bed must be kept dark and protected 
from rain by being covered over. 
A good plan is to place a thermometer on the surface 
of the bed under the covering. An ei¥ort should be made 
to keep the temperature as nearlv as possible to about 60 
degs. F. If it is found below this figure, more covering 
must be added ; if above this, some must be removed. The 
beds should be uncovered in about five weeks' time, 
brushing" away any mould or dirt which may have gath- 
ered on the surface. If the soil should at any time appear 
dry, give the bed a watering with tepid water (not cold), 
and cover up again as before. In about ten days' time 
mushrooms will make their appearance in good numbers. 
When gathering- mushrooms, do not cut the stalks, 
but give each one a gentle twist with the fingers, pull- 
ing tip with it the whole of its stalk and the small pieces 
of roots usually attached to it. If a constant supply of 
mushrooms be desired a new bed should be made up 
about every six weeks. Your first bed should be ready 
for spawning early in July. 
POINSETTIAS FROM HARD'WOOD CUTTINGS. 
A START in poinsettias should be made in June, cut- 
"^ ting the old stems up into one, two or three eye 
cuttings. Drop them as made into a can of water. When 
finished take them out and let them dry for a few hours. 
Then dibble them into their flowering pots, which can be 
from four-inch to as large as desired. Three or four 
cuttings in a four-inch or more in proportion to the size 
of pot will make a fine bushy plant. 
When the cuttings are inserted in their pots give them 
a good watering to settle the soil, after which be sparing 
with water until they are rooted. .\ light spraying twice 
a dav will keep them plump and assist the eyes to break. 
.\void getting the soil in the pots sodden. Give them a 
light, sunny bench, as near to the glass as possible. This 
will keep the plants sturdy and short-jointed. If any 
shoots start away before the others pinch the points out 
after they have made three or four leaves. This will keep 
the plants in shape. 
It will be necessary to grade the cuttings in order to 
get them to root more uniformly. The bottom part of 
the can being much harder than the top, take as a rule 
longer to root. These should be kept together, the middle 
and top cuttings treated likewise. 
.\ny good soil with a dash of bone meal and plenty of 
sand will suit poinsettias. They will require a little feed- 
ing in the fall to keep the foliage in good condition, espe- 
ciallv if grown in small pots. If single stem large flowers 
are desired, one cutting should be started in a three-inch 
pot and potted on. — Exchange. 
