94 
MUSHROOMS, HOW TO GROW THEM. 
a layer of fine, dry soil three or four inches thick. The 
spawn ought to be very dry, otherwise we shall get a 
premature crop of mushrooms instead of fresh spawn. 
At the end of six weeks or a couple of months the new 
spawn ought to make its appearance, a fact which we 
may learn by opening the bed. One sign, which will 
save us the trouble of opening up the beds, is the appear¬ 
ance of young mushrooms on the surface. The layer of 
earth is first removed, and then the cakes of spawn are 
treated as described in the directions given for the first 
method of making spawn. ” 
Third Method (by Lachaume). “By filling in a 
trench like that described in the first method, by a series 
of layers of one-third of pigeon or fowl guano, and two- 
thirds of short manure, containing a large proportion of 
spent horse droppings, treading it down firmly, watering 
it if it is too dry, and finishing up with a layer of soil, 
as described already, we may, at the end of a couple of 
months, or even a little longer, procure a supply of well- 
formed cakes of spawn of excellent quality, which may 
be used in the ordinary manner.” 
From Mr. Robinson’s “Mushroom Culture.” “This 
(French) spawn is obtained by preparing a little bed, as 
if for mushrooms, in the ordinary way, and spawning it 
with morsels of virgin spawn, if that is obtainable; and 
then when the spawn has spread through it, the bed is 
broken up and used for spawning beds in the caves, or 
dried and preserved for sale.” 
From Mr. Wright’s book on mushrooms. “French 
spawn . . is contained in flakes of manure. Neither 
is it virgin spawn, nor derived immediately from it, 
. . . but is spawn taken from one bed for impreg¬ 
nating another.” 
Relative Merits of Flake and Brick Spawn.— 
The flake or French spawn costs about three times as 
much as the brick or English spawn* and, as it is so 
