224 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
December 7, 1895. 
HINTS FOR AMATEURS. 
Mushrooms for the Million. 
A bald project this, some will say. Others, per¬ 
haps, more sceptical as to its feasibility, may shake 
their heads and ask : " Is it is possible to get Mush¬ 
rooms for the million ? ” Certainly, we would reply, 
why not ? To tell the truth we Britishers are very 
slow to accept anything that is new or straDge, and 
apt to eye askance anything that appears on 
the face of it to be somewhat out of the usual 
run of things. Now we have been used to 
regard Mushrooms as a delicacy intended for 
aristocratic lips alone, and one, therefore, that it is 
presumption, for being lower in the social scale as at 
present constituted, to desire. Well, they are a 
delicacy, there's no doubt about; and such they will 
doubtless continue for some time; but there is no 
need whatever for them to be a rarity as well. 
In the country, where large quantities of the 
common Agaricus campestris are gathered duriDg the 
late summer and early autumn months, the commoner 
people do get a taste, and sometimes more than a 
taste of the delicious esculent, but in our large towns 
this is by no means the case, even when the influx of 
the uncultivated Agarics causes the prices to fall 
considerably. In the winter and spring the prices 
are practically prohibitive to all but those who 
have a fairly long stocking to draw from. The idea 
has thus got pretty widely disseminated that all sorts 
of conveniences are necessary to be able to grow 
Mushrooms—large quantities of manure, expensive 
houses built on purpose, efficient heating materials, 
and the employment of skilled labour. This last 
necessity seems to be about the worst, for, after much 
cogitation, the amateur comes to the conclusion 
that under no consideration can he be termed 
•' skilled labour.’’ Many are daunted in trying their 
hand by the records of the numerous failures which 
come to their ears. 
Fungi are notoriously queer things with which to 
deal; they are always doing something for which 
there is no precedent, and the edible ones are no 
exception to the rule. Thus, a gardener who has all 
the most approved conveniences at his command 
will sometimes fail in obtaining a crop, whilst some 
old woman in a back yard will succeed. As a rule, 
the more elaborate the preparations the more scanty 
is the crop that results. Some amount of prepara¬ 
tion is necessary, however, and there are some points 
that must be very closely looked after or failure is sure 
to result; but these necessities are all well within 
the reach of the average amateur gardener to supply, 
and therefore we may well set the Mushroom down 
to be an esculent which those who possess any con¬ 
venience at all may enjoy at intervals throughout 
the winter months. We have heard of stewards on 
board ship raising crops of Mushrooms—unbeknown 
to the captain, of course—in disused lockers, and of 
household servants growing them in old wine cases 
in the cellar, or in other equally unlikely places. 
Now it stands to reason that they must be easy to 
grow or they would never be obtained in this way by 
men who know very little indeed of gardening in any 
of its branches. 
Attached to most ordinary houses there may usually 
be found several suitable spots such as out-houses, 
sheds or stables that might be turned to account, 
whilst within doors a vacant corner in the cellar, an 
old cupboard or recess of any kind may often be made 
to do duty with the best of results. We are 
acquainted with one old party who grew Mushroom s 
in boxes placed under her bed ; but this is a method 
that will posibly not recommend itself to very many 
of our readers. If beds are made up in sheds and 
outhouses where there are no means of excluding 
the frost, it is evident that crops can be obtained 
during open winters, as after the glass sinks below 
40° Fahr, there is practically no fungous growth. 
Still, as has been suggested, in mild winters beds may 
be kept in bearing if they are covered up well with a 
layer of dry straw, hay, or bracken, as the internal 
heat of the manure should keep up pretty well if the 
bed has been properly made up. For winter culture, 
however, nothing beats filling old boxes,which should 
be at least eighteen inches in depth, with manure and 
placing them in the cellar within doors. From these, 
Mushrooms may be cut all through the winter. 
A few words cf advice upon making up these boxes 
may be of service. Fresh horse-droppings should be 
procured from the nearest mews or stables. These, 
of course, will be mixed to a certain extent with short 
straw. The whole must be thrown up into a heap to 
heat, and turned now and again—say once on alter¬ 
nate days, until the whole is fermenting nicely- 
Then fill the box or boxes with the compost, 
ramming it in as hard as possible. The boxes may 
be filled to within about three inches of the top : that 
will give about fifteen inches depth of manure. It 
is always better to make the beds fairly deep in 
winter time, for the obvious reason that the heat does 
not decline so soon. After the box has been filled it 
may be left until it appears to be at its hottest. 
Mushroom growers always test the heat of their 
large beds by means of a plunging thermometer, but 
this will not be necessary in this case, as it is not at 
all likely that the small beds the amateur is likely 
to make up will get too warm to endanger the 
spawn, as there is scarcely sufficient body of manure 
to accomplish this. 
The spawn may now be put in without delay. 
Break the bricks up into small pieces about the size 
of a large pigeon's egg, and by means of a pointed 
stick bury them just below the surface. About four 
inches of space each way between these pieces will 
be ample space to allow. After planting the spawn 
level the surface down nicely and make it firm again, 
afterwards giving a covering of about one inch in 
depth of nice fine loam, if it is procurable ; if not 
garden soil may be made to answer nearly as well. 
This also must be levelled and beaten fairly firm 
with the mallet. If the soil is very wet, however, 
we must caution ramming it until it becomes a pasty 
mud. 
Operations are now completed. It only remains 
to cover the top of the bed with a good thick layer 
of straw or bracken so as to effectually exclude the 
light, and to consign it to the place that is for the 
nonce to serve as a Mushroom house, and to wait 
patiently for results. This, no doubt, is the hardest 
part of the business, for it is characteristic of many 
people that they can work but cannot wait. To such 
as these the benefit accruing from the culture of 
Mushrooms will be immense ; for not only will their 
palates be tickled, supposing the results to be 
satisfactory, but they will learn patience, or at least 
learn how to exercise it. Under ordinary circum¬ 
stances the buttons or small Mushrooms should 
commence to appear within about six weeks from 
the date of the insertion of the spawn ; rarely it is 
less, very often longer. We have known beds to lie 
apparently lifeless ffir nearly three months, and then, 
at the expiration of that period, to burst forth with 
a first-rate crop. For such erratic proceedings on 
the part of the Mushroom we can offer no absolute 
reason ; probably like county councillors, new women, 
and other queer animals they do things at times out 
of pure “ cussedness,” as our American friends 
would express it. 
In closing, it may be necessary to point out the 
advisability of getting good fresh spawn. We are 
perfectly well aware that the amateur scarcely likes 
to go to a large firm of nurserymen and dealers in 
horticultural requisites with a small order. In this 
case it is the best plan for two or three householders 
to unite their several orders, and share out after, 
wards ; for if a small local shopkeeper is applied to he 
may supply stuff that has been drying off and losing 
its vitality in his stores (?) for years. Many disap¬ 
pointments, therefore, may be saved if attention is 
paid to the getting of fresh spawn from a reliable 
source.— Rex, 
Questions asked by amateurs on any subject pertaining 
to gardens or gardening will be answered on this page. 
Anyone may give additional or more explanatory answers 
to questions that have already appeared. 
Storing Salsafy.—Would you be good enough to 
tell me how to store Salsafy so that it shall keep 
well during the winter. I have a small shed in 
which I store Carrots and Onions. Would this 
suit ?— F. B. 
The Salsafy should be lifted from the open ground 
as soon as possible, as it is necessary to have it 
under cover in order that it may be attainable when 
required for use. The shed used for keeping the 
Carrots and Onions will do admirably—of course, 
supposing severe frost to be excluded. A quantity of 
fine dry soil or sand should be obtained, and the 
roots packed up in a neat pyramid, a layer of the 
soil being placed between each layer of the roots ; 
finishing off with a rather thicker layer of soil to 
effectually exclude the light. 
Roses for Walls.—I have a wall against which I 
should like to train a Rose of some kind. There is 
a good, deep and well-drained border all ready. The 
wall faces nearly east. Would it be too cold for a 
Marechal Niel ? and if so, what variety would you 
advise planting in such an aspect ?— To Kio. 
You are quite right in supposing that a w T all facing 
due east would be too bleak an aspect upon which to 
plant a Marechal Niel. For such a situation we 
advise you to try a Gloire de Dijon. There is no 
more grand all-round variety than this. It is 
wonderfully hardy, grows as freely as if it had only 
a couple of years to do it in, and comes into flower 
as early as any, whilst it is usually to be seen opening 
some of its latest buds amidst the white frosts of 
autumn. The blooms, moreover, are of a charming 
shade of colour, and more than one gay young gallant 
bedecks his coat with the trim little buds of our old 
friend, Gloire de Dijon, when he goes forth to court 
the gentle Phyllis. 
Cats.—A genuine croak this time, coming, of course, 
from someone signing himself Grumbler, who has been 
sorely plagued by the cats of which his neighbour 
seems to keep a colony, breaking the glass of his 
greenhouse, and ruining sundry plants of which he 
was very fond. He asks what he is to do ? 
Keep a dog, Grumbler ! This often works wonders— 
likewise a few healthy boys with brickbats. Again 
it hath been told us that a garden syringe loaded 
with petroleum, and applied with a fair amount of 
force and some dexterity of aim, will strike terror 
to the hearts of the marauders, and bring them 
already condemned before the bar of their own con 
sciences. 
Gooseberries.—Will you give me through the 
medium of the Amateur's Page the names of three 
varieties of Gooseberries likely to do well in the 
southern counties.— Tomkins. 
For an early variety we should recommend the 
Early Green Gage or Green Hairy, as it sometimes 
called. Crown Bob, for a mid-season, is a splendid 
sort, the fruit being large and fine. For a late 
variety you cannot do better than pin your faith 
to Red Warrington—an old variety it is true, but a 
thoroughly reliable one. It hangs a long while on 
the trees after it is ripe without deteriorating much 
in flavour. 
Tea Roses.—Is it necessary for me to afford my 
Tea Roses any protection during the winter ? They 
were planted out last spring, and thus have as yet 
had no taste of the quality of a British winter.— 
York. 
Unfortunately Tea Roses are not blessed with the 
strongest of constitutions, and thus it is necessary, in 
the midland and northern counties, to cover them 
up towards the end of autumn. In the south, where 
the winters are usually a good deal milder, such pre¬ 
cautions are not required, except in exceptional cases. 
If you can obtain a quantity of dry bracken the 
plants may be covered over with this ; it is light and 
dry and will keep off a lot of frost. Of course, straw 
or hay might be used, but it is open to the objection 
that it looks rubbishy. 
-- 
CALVARY CLOVER. 
Calvary Clover is the common name of a very un¬ 
common plant, that is, if its absence from British 
gardens and British works of reference is a fair 
criterion. The English Encyclopaedia and the Diction¬ 
ary of Gardening, amongst other standard authorities, 
are alike, silent as to this particular species of the 
Leguminosae. If, then, the plant is of no horticul¬ 
tural value it is at least a curiosity. Its botanical 
name (Medicago Echinus) well expresses cne of its 
peculiarities, for its legumes, in the green condition, 
are very similar to little hedgehogs, inasmuch as 
they are rough and spiny, even if they are not quite 
so pronounced as ■' the quills upon the fretful porcu¬ 
pine.” 
When, however, its tiny polished, bean-like seeds 
are ripe, the pods change colour, elongate, and form 
a curious spiral, fringed with long bristles, which 
may be drawn out three or four inches, but which is 
so elastic that it will revert again to its original 
position. Its flowers are yellow, small, axillary, and 
of no particular beauty ; while its leaves, which 
symbolise a cross, are of the true Trifolium type, 
the leaflets having a dark irregular blotch upon 
them. These two circumstances doubtless contri¬ 
buted to its very significant name. The plant has 
long, trailing stems, and should, therefore, make a 
