season. 
242 
MOORE’S RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
MUSHROOMS FOE THE MILLION. 
Too few know how to produce this luxury 
cheaply. D. T. Fish says“ In any place- 
back shed, tloor of hot-house, cellar, stable, 
garret—where a temperature of 50 or 56’ 
can be maintained, mushrooms may be 
grown. We have heard of a Belgian cook 
who grew t hem in his old shoes, and assured¬ 
ly they can be grown very well in four or 
six-inch pots, pans, boxes, or even in a 
cracked tea-pot. The accompanying is an 
illustration of how they can be grown in the 
tops and bottoms of old casks, A barrel is 
sawn crossways Into two pieces, each form¬ 
ing a tub. Holes are made in the bottoms 
of each, and a thin layer of good soil is 
spread over them inside. They are then 
lilled with good, well-prepared stable ma¬ 
nure, just like that used in ordinary mush¬ 
room beds, the different layer# of manure 
in each tub being well pressed down. When 
the tub is half lilled, six or seven good pieces 
of spawn are placed oil the surface, and the 
remainder is tilled up with manure, which 
is well pressed down, the operation being 
completed by giving to the heap the form of 
a dome. The tubs thus prepared, are placed 
in a perfectly dark part of acellar, and eight 
or ten days afterwards the manure is taken 
off until the spawn is visible, in order to see 
whether it has commenced to vegetate and 
develop little filaments. If the spawn lias 
spread, the surface must be covered with 
soil, care being taken to use only that which 
is fresh and properly prepared. In this or 
any similar way, there should be no difficul¬ 
ty in growing mushrooms; the boxes or 
tubs could be filled anywhere, and then car¬ 
ried into sparecellars, etc. In this manner, 
objections against steaming manure might, 
in many cases, be got over. 
“There is one immense advantage in 
growing mushrooms in portable and small 
pots, boxes, tubs or cask bottoms. When 
the manure gets cooled dowu, and the crop 
gets ohecked for lack of warmth, these port¬ 
able contrivances, with their freight of 
young mushrooms, maybe plunged bodily 
into warmer media, such as a sweet bed of 
fermenting manure. Crops can likewise be 
safely hastened or retarded by ranges of 
temperature from (15* to 45”, Thus they 
may be brought forth from the cellars and 
placed in forcing-houses at work, or plant 
stoves, in cases of emergency. Even the 
cook might grow his own mushrooms in pots 
on his kitchen shelves or under his table, 
and when they come in with too great a 
rush, remove them to the cold meat larder, 
to take a quiet nap till wanted. By plung¬ 
ing the pots or pans in a genial medium, I 
have found that the fermenting material 
inside the pot# may be almost dispensed 
with. The spawn runs best in a little sweet 
horse manure, that is, manure that has had 
its grossness sweated out of it by ten days’ 
or a fortnight’s gentle fermentation, and 
four or six turnings upside down and inside 
out. Place a handful of this in a pot or pan, 
with one or more pieces of spawn, according 
to the size of the pot; Till with soil, and 
plunge in a bottom heat of, say 55* or (SO*, 
and In live or six week# a crop of mush¬ 
rooms will be gathered. Should the heat 
fail, renew it with fresh manure and re- 
plunge. By this method, a uniform tem¬ 
perature may be provided for the mush¬ 
rooms through the whole period of growth. 
“Finally, 1 never could discover any dif¬ 
ference between mushrooms grown in the 
dark and those grown in the light, and 
therefor the latter is by no means essential. 
Indeed, dry, warm cellars are among the 
best situat ions for mushrooms. Good spawn 
is the one thing essential." 
-- 
CHICORY CULTURE. 
I should like to learn something of the 
cultivation of chicory. Can it be cultiva¬ 
ted successfully in this climate (Niagara 
Falls)? Win you or some one of your many 
readers give me the necessary information 
as to the mode of producing it. — P. 3. 
W nioiiT. 
The common chicory, having been intro¬ 
duced into our gardens many years ago, has 
now spread over the country, and can be 
found growing wild as a troublesome weed. 
There are many varieties, some of which 
are extensively grown for salads, the young 
leaves being blanolied either by tying to¬ 
gether or covered with boxes. The root is 
also used for the adulteration of coffee, and 
if you wish to grow it for thi* purpose get 
»the Large or Turnip-rooted chioory, and 
sow the seeds early iu spring, previously 
preparing the soil by ploughing deep and 
making it rich. As the success of the crop 
depends upon the size of the roots, a thor- i 
ough and deep pulverization of the soil is 
one of the first and most important requi¬ 
sites. Bow the seeds in drills, far enough 
apart to admit of working between with a 
hoe or hand cultivator. When the plants 
are a few inchos high, thin out t.o about five 
or six inches apart iu the row. Cultivate 
thoroughly through the summer, and in fall 
dig the roots, wash and clean them, then 
cut into small pieces and dr}' in a kiln, after 
which they are ready for market. Large 
quantities of dried chicory are annually 
imported; but we know nothing of the 
profits derived from its culture. 
-- 
GARDENERS’ NOTES. 
Preparing Land for Strawberries.— 
In your valuable paper, March 2, A. W. 
i'lrc f) on lfnr- 
POULTRY NOTES AND QUERIES. 
Diseased Fowls.— Some two months 
ago a disease attacked one of my chicker.., 
which is entirely new to me. The right 
side of its head swelled up, closing and ap¬ 
pearing very much inflamed. In a few days 
a w hitish circle appeared on the outer edge 
of the part affected; on examining it, I 
found that the flesh had become like a mass 
of cheese; hided, a piece of strong Limbur- 
ger would smell sweet beside it. I saw no 
hopes for that ohicken, so took its head off. 
A few days after, another was attacked in 
PAIR 
G-RAY DORKING-3. 
Woodcock inquires about manure, etc., 
for strawberries. In spring I prepare tlie 
ground for a crop of early potatoes, manur¬ 
ing it so as to grow that crop well. Work 
the potatoes well, keeping them clear of 
weeds. Wiie-a the crop comes o£T I give a 
light coating of manure, plow the ground 
deep, pick off weeds, otc., harrow and level 
it well. I then line out the rows throe feet 
apart, go to (lie nursery bed with a fiat box 
or basket, lift (iu* plants with ball of earth, 
and carry them to the ground prepared for 
planting. A boy goes before with a garden 
trowel, digs the holes about four inches 
deep, sixteen inches apart in the row, im¬ 
mediately before the planter; he fills each 
hole with water; the planter drops in the 
plant and covers the root with dry earth, 
pressing lightly. By #o doing, no matter 
how hot and dry the weather may' bo. I 
never fail to have a full crop the next sea¬ 
son ; and that is as much as you can have by 
spring planting. I prefer potatoes as a crop, 
as the ground is thereby well cleaned. I 
generally plant all through the month of 
August. I plant, on an average, 3,000 plants 
every season. It is very tedious, but it will 
pay. If 1 had not plants of my own, I would 
purchase a few hundred in the spring, ma¬ 
nure the ground and work them well, pick¬ 
ing off the fruit atems before they bloom. 
They will have made good plant# by August. 
In this section I find the best kind# are, 1st, 
Wilson's Albany; 2d, Green Prolific; 2d, 
Agriculturist. I have tried many others, 
but fall back on these. The above remarks 
apply more especially to growing for mar¬ 
ket.— Jas. MeL, Newcastle, Pa. 
Soluble Sulphur and the Red Spi¬ 
der,—R. VAuden w rites The Garden :—“ I 
use this in spring in large quantities for the 
destruction of red spider on gooseberry and 
currant bushes, and prepare it as follows:— 
I slake some quicklime, and mix it with 
about half its weight of common flour of 
sulphur in a heap, with a little water, as in 
making mortar. After lying a few hours, I 
boil it for twenty minutes in a large boiler 
of water, in about the proportiou of one gal¬ 
lon to one pound of the mixture. This pro¬ 
duces a sulphurous liquid, about the color 
of porter, two or throe pints of which to a 
tw'o-gallon bucket of water is strong enough 
for syriuging; but we test the strength, by 
dipping a spray into the bucket, and get the 
liquor just strong enough not todamage the 
leaf. If too strong, the leaf wither# iu an 
hour or two. 
Trophy Tomato.—H. T, Savage is much 
pleased with the Trophy. Seed planted late 
last spring, the plants receiving quite indif¬ 
ferent care, produced vines full of large 
and perfect fruit, ripening as early as any 
kind he ever grew, and of superior "flavor. 
the same way. I immed lately burned it out 
with caustic. This I continued for a week 
and turned it loose, apparently well. In 
less than a week it was worse than ever, 
and, on cutting it, T found that the flesh 
was completely rotted off the bone. Seeing 
no hope of curing it, I killed it and buried 
It so deep that nothing will ever touch it. 
Since then 1 had another affected the same 
way w’liich I killed at once. I have several 
works on poultry, have been a reader of the 
Rural New-Yorker for some years, but 
have never heard of anything like it. The 
cholera killed more than half the fowls in 
the country last year. If this new disease 
is going to attack what is left, I would like 
a remedy for it.—A Subscriber, San An¬ 
tonia, Tex. 
Let any of our readers, who can, give in¬ 
formation that will help our correspondent. 
Brandon. Vt., Farmers’ and Mechan¬ 
ics’ Club Turkeys.— A correspondent 
informs us that a session of this Club was 
devoted to weighing turkeys produced by 
the members—turkeys being regarded about 
as profitable a crop as a farmer ean raise. 
Messrs. Sprague and Merritt presented: 
1 yearling gobbler, weight, 37 lbs.; 1 year¬ 
ling hen, weight, 19# lb#.; 1 chicken gob¬ 
bler, 9 months old, weight, 28# lbs.; 1 wild 
ban, 12 years old, weight, 19# lbs. The 
MINIATURE MUSHROOM BED. 
Committee is reported as of the opinion 
that ten days extra feeding of the pair of 
yearlings would cause them to weigh sixty 
pounds. These turkeys are a cross between 
the Bronze and wild turkey. 
Hondans as Layers. — P. H., Lynn, 
Mass., must have bought his Houdan eggs 
in a poor market. This way, we find the 
Houdans to be fine layers, and strong, 
healthy fowls. I purchased some eggs from 
a man who imported his stock from Cooper, 
They were hatched Aug. 6th, 1870, and com¬ 
menced laying Jan. 15th, 1871. The chicks 
at four weeks old were as far advanced as 
my Light Brahmas at eight weeks; never 
had a sick chicken. One Brahma hen had 
the care of 23 chicks. They are uonssetters 
in every sense of the word, and not so good 
for the table as the Light Brahmas.—R. H. 
II., Farmuuth Port, Mass. 
Brahma Fowl9.—“ A Farmer’s Wife,” 
Indiaua, writes:—" We have kept and bred 
Brahmas and Shanghais, and will give them 
credit for being good winter layers and 
good summer setters. Ours would lay 
fifteen or twenty eggs and then sit on a 
stone, if we would let them,” 
S. H., Johnstown, N. Y.. writes—I have 
bred pure Brahmas for two or three years, 
and am perfectly satisfied with them as 
summer layers, thinking they will outlay 
any of the common breeds. As winter lay¬ 
ers they can't be excelled. My Light Brah¬ 
mas have been laying all this winter, and 
still continue to do so. I should advise per¬ 
sons to keep nothing but Light Brahmas for 
all general purposes,” 
Gray Dorkings.—“New Reader ” asks 
if Gray Dorkings should have feathered 
legs. No; they should be straight, short, 
stout, clean, perfectly free from feathers, 
spurred on the inside, white, with a flesh- 
colored tinge between the scales. We give, 
as he requests, a portrait of a pair of Gray 
Dorkings. The points of all classes of fowls 
are given in detail in the People’s Practical 
Poultry Book. 
Chickens Weak in the Legs.—W. T. 
Trescott’s chickens appear to lose all use 
of their legs—especially the knee joint. In 
other respects they are well, and have good 
appetites. They do not act as fowls do 
that have the vertigo, and lie asks some ex¬ 
perienced poulterer to tell him what is the 
cause, and cure for them. 
Cheap Artificial Mother.—I would like 
to know how to construct a cheap Artificial 
Mother for young chickens.—J. J. Bishop. 
Our correspondent will find in the 
People’s Practical Poultry Book, published 
at this office, descriptions of artificial 
mothers. 
Spanish Cocks’ Combs.— A writer in 
the Cottage Gardeney says:—" A shrivelled 
comb on a Spanish cock is indicative of in¬ 
ternal disease, and is a symptom of ‘ black 
rot,’ to Which this breed is subjeot, and 
from which they never recover.” 
Breeding Pure,—A correspondent asks: 
“ Will a trio of full-blooded fowls breed 
pure if kept in company with other hens? ” 
Wo know no reason why' they should not. 
|lm[at mhiterture. 
HOW TO BUILD AN ICE-H0U8E. 
To build an ice-house ten feet square in¬ 
side, take four planks, two inches thick, 
twelve inches wide, and twelve feet long; 
nail the one on the other at the corners, at 
right-angles; block them up two inches 
from the ground on a level spot; no digging 
is necessary. These planks form the founda¬ 
tion. Stand and plumb a scantling, two by 
four inches, at each corner, ten feet long; 
then stand inch boards, ten inches wide and 
ten feet long, face to face, three or four feet 
apart, perpendicular; board horizontally 
inside and out; fill in the vacant space with 
tanbark, sawdust, or chaff, the chaff being 
well packed in the hollow wall; eight feet 
six inches from the foundation will be suf¬ 
ficient packing; make three holes, three 
inches square, under the eaves on each side; 
this will afford sufficient ventilation. Do 
not select a shady place for the house, as the 
ice keeps better in an open space. The 
gable ends and roof require to be single, and 
must not be packed. Ice must ha ve air to 
preserve it; it is as essential as air for a man. 
Place the door in either the north, south 
or east end; pack the wall under the door 
step eighteen inches high from the ground; 
make the door three feet wide, six feet six 
inches high. One door will answer; lay six 
inches deep of leached hemlock tanbark 
on the ground inside, to lay the ice on. No 
drain is required. Fourteen hundred feot 
of common lumber will be enough to build 
au ice-house twelve by twelve feet, outside 
measurement, ready for the shingles. 
To pack the ice, cut it as straight as pos¬ 
sible, and pack close together; lay' six inches 
of clean pine sawdust on the top of the ioo 
to protect it. When the sawdust falls down 
around the sides, put in a few baskets full 
as the ice requires it, and you will have uo 
trouble in saving ice. Build the ice-house as 
close as possible to the dwelling-bouse, — 
James MoKelvey, St, Catharines, Ont. 
The foregoing article did not reach us 
until March 20th; but it is not too late for 
readers in some localities to utilize if this 
