CHAPTER XVI. 
WATERING MUSHROOM BEDS. 
If the beds get dry they should be watered, for mush¬ 
rooms will not grow well in dry beds or in a dry atmos¬ 
phere. Watering is an operation requiring much care. 
In properly-made beds the manure should remain moist 
enough from first to last, and whatever dryness is evident 
should be in the loam casing of the beds and the atmos¬ 
phere. In all artificially heated mushroom houses the 
beds and atmosphere are apt to get too dry at one time or 
another; in underground houses or cellars this is less 
apparent than in above-ground structures; in shaded 
north-facing houses dryness is less troublesome than in 
houses more openly placed. 
Endeavor by ah fair means to lessen the necessity for 
watering the beds, but wnen water is needed never hesi¬ 
tate to give it freely. Mulching the beds and maintain¬ 
ing a moist atmosphere are the best preventives. After 
the beds are spawned and molded it is a good plan to 
cover them with a light coating of strawy litter or hay 
to prevent drying, but this mulching should be removed 
when it is near time for the young mushrooms to appear. 
A light sprinkling of water over this mulching every 
few days, but never enough to reach the soil, assists in 
preserving enough moisture in the bed under the mulch 
and also in the atmosphere of the house. 
Clean, soft water at a temperature of 80° or 90°; a 
little warmer or a little colder will not hurt, but do not 
use water higher than 110°, as it might injure the little 
pinheads, nor lower than the average temperature of the 
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