MUSHROOM SPAWJST. 
83 
dry and preserve and use it as you would French spawn, 
for it is the best kind of flake spawn. In using virgin 
spawn for spawning beds I have obtained larger and 
heavier mushrooms than from “made” spawn, and the 
beds lasted longer in good bearing, but the weight of 
the whole crop has not been more than from artificial 
spawn. 
How to Keep Spawn. —Spawn should be kept in a 
dry, airy place, somewhat dark, if convenient, and in a 
temperature between 35° and 65°. Wherever things 
will “must,” as in a cellar, cupboard against a wall, or 
in a close, damp building, is a very poor place for keep¬ 
ing spawn. If the spawn is perfectly dry and kept in a 
dry, airy place, and not in large bulk, and covered, it 
will bear a high temperature with apparent impunity, 
but whenever dampness, even of the atmosphere, is 
coupled with heat, the mycelium begins to grow, and 
this, in the storeroom, is ruinous to the spawn. Judg¬ 
ing from our natural mushroom crops, the spawn for 
which must be alive in the ground in winter, one con¬ 
cludes that frost should not be injurious to the artificial 
spawn, still my experience is that hard frost destroys 
the vitality of both brick and flake spawn. And this is 
one reason why I get our full supply of spawn in the 
fall and keep it myself rather than submit it to the 
mercy of the seed store. 
New Versus Old Spawn. —How long spawn may 
be kept without its vitality becoming impaired is an 
unsettled question, but there is no doubt, if properly 
kept, it will remain good for several years. But I can 
not impress too strongly upon the reader the importance 
of using fresh spawn. Do not use any old spawn at any 
price; do not accept it gratis and ruin your prospect of 
success by using it. It takes three months from the 
time when the manure is gathered for the beds until the 
mushrooms are harvested. Can you, therefore, afford 
