MUSHROOM SPAWN. 
93 
A Second Method (by Lachaume). “This is gener¬ 
ally adopted by mushroom growers. The formation of 
the spawn is accelerated by adding pieces of old spawn 
here and there. ... At the beginning of April we 
must choose a piece of ground situated at the foot of a 
wall facing north. . . . The soil ought to be very 
open and light rather than heavy, so as to avoid damp¬ 
ness. Taking advantage of a fine day, we open a trench 
sixteen inches wide and at about eight inches from the 
foot of the wall, and of a length adapted to the quantity 
of spawn we desire to produce. The earth is thrown 
out on the side opposite the wall. Manure which has 
been prepared for a mushroom bed, and has just come 
into condition is then filled into the trench, leaving, 
however, a space at one end of it about two feet and six 
inches in length for the formation of a mushroom bed, 
which is made by tossing the manure about and shaking 
it up with the hands, after which it is pressed down 
with the hands and knees. As soon as the layer of 
manure reaches six inches in thickness we place along 
the edge a number of lumps of spawn at about one foot 
apart. These lumps are placed level with the manure 
on the edge facing the wall. This portion of the surface 
of the manure ought to be raised vertically, and should 
lean against the earthen wall of the trench. The other 
half of the surface ought to slope gently toward the 
wall, leaving a space of three or four inches between it 
and the side of the trench, so that it may be trimmed. 
The lumps of spawn on this surface should be placed a 
little backward, so that they may not be broken when 
the bed is trimmed. The bed is then covered with more 
manure, until the first lumps of spawn are buried three 
or four inches deep. A second row of lumps of spawn 
is then inserted, as described in the directions for mak¬ 
ing the first row, and the bed is filled up level with the 
surface of the soil. It is finished by covering it up with 
