GROWING MUSHROOMS IK CELLARS. 
31 
beds, No. 2, begins in August, the beds are made up in 
September, and the mushrooms gathered in November; 
preparing for the two beds, No. 3, begins in September, 
the beds are made up in October, gathering commences 
in December; for the two beds. No. 4, work begins in 
October, the beds are made up in November, and the 
crop is gathered in January; for the two beds. No. 5 
(No. 1 renewed), work begins in November, the beds 
are made up in December, and the crop is gathered in 
February; for the two beds, No. 6 (No. 2 renewed), 
work begins in December, the beds are made up in Jan¬ 
uary, and the crop is gathered in March; for the two 
beds, No. ? (No. 3 renewed), work begins in January, 
the beds are made up in February, and the crop is gath¬ 
ered in April; for the two beds. No. 8 (No. 4 renewed), 
work begins in February, the beds are made up in 
March, and the mushrooms gathered in May. After 
this time of year the summer heat renders mushroom¬ 
growing uncertain, and the maggots destroy the mush¬ 
rooms. This system allows each bed a bearing period 
of two months. After yielding a crop for some seven 
to nine weeks the beds are pretty well exhausted and 
hardly worth retaining longer. They might drag along 
in a desultory way for weeks, but as soon as they stop 
yielding a paying crop we clear them out and start 
afresh. 
And when the mushroom season is closed we lift out 
and remove the manure, clean the boards used in shelv¬ 
ing, and give the cellar a thorough cleaning,—whitewash 
its walls and paint its woodwork with kerosene to destroy 
noxious insects and fungi. 
The heating apparatus consists of one of Hitchings’ 
base-burner boilers with a four-inch hot-water pipe that 
passes around inside the cellar, and it deserves special 
mention because of its economy, efficiency, and the sat¬ 
isfaction it gives generally. This boiler needs no deep or 
