CULTURE IN SHEDS, CELLARS, ARCHES, OUTHOUSES, AND ALL ENCLOSED
STRUCTURES OTHER THAN THE MUSHROOM-HOUSE.
MUSHROOMS may be, and are, grown to perfection in many less ambitious
structures than the mushroom-house proper. Any species of outhouse will
do for the autumn and early winter crops. One of the best crops I have
ever seen was grown in a dry and unused coach-house. Mr. Robert Fish
grows all his crops in a long, low, rude thatched shed, open in
front--the beds flat, in a continuous line against a wall, and enclosed
by a low board. Mr. Cuthill, who wrote on mushrooms, and who used to
grow them very well, grew his in rude sheds placed against walls. It
matters not in the least if the shed be open or ventilated here and
there, especially for autumn crops, as I have seen admirable crops in
low outhouses searched by every gust, and not heated by flues. The beds
in these should always be covered with hay. Mushrooms may be grown in
cellars; but cellars being commonly under houses, they are not exactly
the places to which people like to convey the materials necessary for
the making of mushroom-beds. Where they occur away from a
dwelling-house, this objection will not hold good. In some cases it
might be obviated by making the beds in rough boxes, say 3½ ft. long
by 1½ ft. wide, and afterwards introducing them into the cellar.
Railway or other arches, or any dry and empty structures, may be used
for mushroom-growing.
“The construction,” says Mr. William Ingram, of Belvoir, in a letter to
the _Field_, “of efficient mushroom-houses is sufficiently understood by
most of our hothouse-builders and by gardeners; but the economical
adaptation of places which already exist is a matter which may with the
greatest advantage be discussed, as there are hundreds of persons about
whose establishments may be found outhouses, cellars, quarries, or
sheds, capable of conversion into mushroom-houses, who would be very
glad to be taught the method of growing mushrooms, and to have the
simple principles that should govern the construction of mushroom-houses
explained.
“There are few large farmsteads that are without an unconsidered place
which could be readily adapted for the purpose of growing mushrooms; and
farmers possess the material at hand, horse manure, which would not
suffer great deterioration if employed in first raising a crop of
mushrooms. Country brewing establishments have equal conveniences and
opportunities. By relating the means by which I have been for several
years able to raise large quantities of excellent mushrooms, in a place
originally but ill adapted for the purpose, I may induce some of those
persons who desire the luxury of what Soyer called ‘the Pearl of the
Fields,’ to turn their attention to the subject of their growth.
“I had a large, open, airy shed at command, but it was liable to be
affected by changes in the weather, and was altogether too draughty and
cold in winter, and too hot in summer. I built within this shed, with
rough fir boards, an inner shed, 18 ft. long, 6 ft. wide, and 8 ft. in
height; two receptacles for beds were formed, one on the floor, the
other above it: and to give the requisite heat in winter, I passed a
flue, formed of 9-in. socket pipes, through the house; with this I can
always command an adequate amount of heat. The material of which the
beds are formed is chiefly droppings, collected from an enclosed and
covered exercise ground. These droppings are trampled by the horses, and
mixed with straw broken up with the manure by the passage of the horses.
“When first collected it is piled up in a large heap, in a perfectly dry
state, and when wanted for the bed is thrown out, sprinkled with water,
and fermented for about a week; while hot, it is taken to the house, and
as it is thrown in is mixed with a small quantity of soil of a loamy
character, and a barrow-load of leaf soil. It is then pressed into as
compact a mass as possible by a rammer or mallet, building it up until
it forms a bed 10 in. thick in front and 20 in. at the back. After a bed
formed of this description of materials has been thus put together,
rapid fermentation takes place; and when the most violent fermentative
action has passed, and a temperature of 80° is found in the bed, spawn
is put into it by means of a dibber. I employ brick spawn obtained from
good makers, but, to vary and possibly prolong the period of production,
I introduce a certain quantity of spawn saved from old beds. This is
longer in its development than the made spawn, and appears as a
subsidiary crop. After the bed is spawned, a covering of compact loamy
soil is spread on the surface, 1½ in. to 2 in. in thickness, and well
beaten upon it so as to form a smooth and hard crust. A temperature
ranging from 50° to 60° should be maintained in the house. A lower
temperature abstracts the heat from the bed more rapidly.
“When the mushrooms begin to exhibit weakness, as after the bed has
produced a certain quantity they will do, from the exhaustion of the
more stimulating portions of the manure, I find it an excellent practice
to administer a sprinkling of water in which a handful of salt has been
thrown (that quantity of salt to a three-gallon can). Saltpetre, though
in much smaller quantities, is equally valuable given in the same way.
The practice I have described relates to the winter cultivation of
mushrooms.”
Many instances of perfect success like the preceding could be quoted.
Here is one from Mr. W. P. Ayres:--
“You will be glad to hear that we have on the outskirts of this town
(Nottingham) a grower of mushrooms (Mr. Cookson, Mansfield Road) who
vies with the French growers, especially if the means of growth be taken
into consideration. The place he occupies was formerly the pleasure
garden of a large hotel, where the proprietor would occasionally, in the
summer season, treat his friends and patrons to an _al fresco_
entertainment. For this purpose a range of summer-houses was built,
consisting of brick arches, say 12 feet deep, 6 feet wide, and a little
more in height. Close adjoining is a small sandstone-rock cellar, which
used to serve for drinkables in the summer and potatoes in the winter.
“Some twelve months ago these premises and the house adjoining fell into
the occupation of a gardener, who, though he had a licence to the house,
fancied he might turn the arches to a better purpose, and hence he
devoted them to mushroom beds. As it was necessary that the arches
should be closed, a wall about three feet high was built in the rudest
manner parallel with their front, but six feet from it, and from that a
roof of rough timber was thrown, and covered with asphalted felt. Here,
however, was a mistake; for, the building standing due south, when the
sun fell upon it the atmosphere became rather ‘tarry’--so much so that
the mushrooms refused to grow in it. That wore off after a time, and
from a bed not more than thirty yards square the tenant told me he had
cut more than 25_l._ worth of mushrooms. When I saw the beds they might
be considered spent, the flush of early youth was over; but still the
crop was most wonderful, especially considering the means at command.
“In the rock cellar the small beds were a pavement of splendid
mushrooms, many of them as large over as a cheese-plate, and thick in
proportion. In the garden is a barn--four walls with a roof over them,
the latter so rude that it was only in fair weather that it could be
called waterproof. In this place which may be 25 ft. long by 15 ft.
wide, two tiers of beds have been put up, the roof has been made
waterproof, a common brick flue put through it, and, at the time I saw
them, more promising beds could not be desired. Here again, you will
perceive expensive appliances are not necessary for the production of
mushrooms.”
Stables and like structures offer capital positions in which successful
mushroom culture may be carried out with ease.
If it is possible, and we know it is not only possible but easy, to grow
mushrooms in boxes a few feet long and a foot or eighteen inches wide,
and the same depth, it is clear that there can be no difficulty about
growing them in abundance in such a manner as that shown in the
accompanying engraving. This mode was actually practised with great
success by the Baron Joseph d’Hoogvorst, of Limmel.
[Illustration: Fig. 14. Mushroom culture on shelves in stable.]
The culture was carried out in neatly fitted-up wooden boxes, so
arranged that they might be shrouded with canvas curtains as shown in
the engraving, so that at first sight one would not suppose that
mushroom culture was carried on there. No evil results as regards the
creation of an unhealthy atmosphere accompanied the attempt. The beds
were formed much in the usual way from the droppings of highly fed
horses. Now there can be no doubt that a similar mode of growing
mushrooms could be carried out in the stables or some adjacent building
in hundreds of places apart from the garden and the gardener altogether.
Given the materials and some position, however contracted, in which to
carry out the culture, and both these things are surely to be had almost
in every place where there is a stable, the rest is so simple that any
stableman or boy could carry it out. We know that these individuals, as
a class, are not much given to botanical or horticultural studies, but
no doubt the prospect of an occasional half-dozen fresh mushrooms on the
gridiron would give them most praiseworthy interest in the culture. The
only objection to it is, or might be, that once they were at home in the
culture, the gardener would be very likely to fall short of materials
for his hotbeds. An empty loft, or any other covered structure could be
employed as well as the stable or an empty coach-house. Apart altogether
from utilizing the walls of the stable, as the Baron did, empty stalls
frequently present an opportunity of growing mushrooms in quantity.
These remarks apply to stables in cities and towns, as well as in the
country; indeed in cities, particularly in London, stable manure is
usually so plentiful that it is much easier to obtain and much cheaper
than in the country, so that even those in London having suitable places
for growing mushrooms, but not keeping horses regularly or at all, could
have no difficulty in procuring abundance of materials.
[Illustration: Fig. 15. Mushroom-bed on rude shelf against wall of
cellar.]
The French often cultivate mushrooms in cellars as well as in the caves
described in the next chapter. Preference should be given to a dry warm
cellar; it should be as dark as possible, and exposed to no draughts.
Beds can be made in cellars in many ways. Those made in the middle
should always be formed with two sides, while those against the walls
should only be half as thick, on account of their having only one useful
side. It is also possible to arrange them on shelves, one above the
other. For this purpose strong bars of iron are driven into the walls,
upon which are placed shelves of the proper size covered with earth,
upon which is formed a bed, that is treated exactly as those made upon
the ground. These beds are just as productive as any of the other
kinds. They may even be made on the bottoms of casks, which should be
at least two feet six in diameter; and they are built up in the shape of
a sugarloaf, about three feet in height, and the pieces of spawn are
placed an inch and a quarter deep, and sixteen inches apart. A barrel is
sawn crossways into two pieces, each forming a tub. Holes are made in
the bottom of each, and a thin layer of good soil is spread over them
inside. They are then filled with good well-prepared stable manure, just
like that used in the case of ordinary mushroom-beds, the different
layers of dung in each tub being well pressed down. When the tub is half
full, six or seven good pieces of spawn are placed on the surface, and
the remainder is piled up with manure, which is well pressed down, the
operation being completed by giving to the heap the form of a dome. The
tubs thus prepared are placed in a perfectly dark part of a cellar, and
eight or ten days afterwards the dung is taken up until the spawn is
visible, in order to see whether it has commenced to vegetate and
develop little filaments. If the spawn has spread, the surface must be
covered with soil, care being taken to use only that which is fresh and
properly prepared. In this or any like way there should be no difficulty
in growing mushrooms: the boxes or tubs could be filled anywhere, and
then carried into the spare cellars, &c. In this way objections against
steaming manure might in many cases be got over.
[Illustration: Fig. 16. Pyramidal mushroom-bed on floor of cellar.]
[Illustration: Fig. 17. Mushrooms grown in bottom of old cask.]
Among the many and various structures in which mushrooms may be grown,
but which we rarely see utilized for that purpose, may be mentioned all
kinds of greenhouses, stoves, pits, and frames. Some of the best crops I
have ever seen were in cold greenhouses almost too ruinous to grow
anything else. In mid-winter the floors of all houses in which a genial
temperature is kept up for forcing or other purposes, offer excellent
positions for producing mushrooms quickly and abundantly. Small
ridge-like beds might be made on the floor of these, and, with the
genial temperature usually kept up in such places, would probably come
into bearing a month or so after being spawned. How often, for example,
do we notice the floors of large vineries, in mid-winter or very early
spring, quite bare, especially after the vines are started. Now just at
that season the genial heat that would be given off from the slightly
fermenting materials used for the mushroom-bed is that which would be
most congenial to the tender breaking vines, and with a little attention
in this way a first-rate crop of mushrooms could always be gathered from
the early vinery, and in houses where no artificial heat was applied
they could also be grown abundantly. A covering of hay would, however,
be necessary in cold houses in mid-winter, to prevent excessive
variation of the temperature, and also in spring and summer to prevent
excessive drying or scorching of the beds by a hot sun. I have even seen
excellent crops grown on the floor in an old lean-to house, the beds
covered with a foot or so of hay, occasionally sprinkled with water to
prevent excessive heat on the surface of the bed. In small places where
every foot of space in the glass-house is likely to be occupied with
plants, it is not easy to carry out the foregoing suggestions, but even
if a small early vinery were occupied with plants, it would be desirable
and practicable to introduce a series of rough boxes devoted to mushroom
culture.
Apart from empty greenhouses altogether, the space beneath the stages in
numbers of glass-houses of every type may be utilized for the production
of mushrooms. These positions are usually unoccupied, occasionally they
are used for storing fuchsias, &c. in winter, but very seldom are they
turned to so good account as they might be in the way I recommend. The
stage in the small greenhouse is frequently elevated so that there is
plenty of room to get beneath it: if at the back or end there is no way
of walking readily under the stage, an opening should be made. The only
difficulty that could possibly occur would arise from the drip from the
plants on the stage above. This, however, can be easily guarded against
by spreading a piece of tarpaulin or oil-canvas over the bed or beds.
With beds properly made, a coat of dry hay or litter, and a piece of
tarpaulin, every owner of anything in the shape of a greenhouse with a
stage in it may grow mushrooms throughout the autumn, winter, and spring
months, and even in summer by keeping the surface of the hay or litter
moist. Of course, if there be room for but one bed, a succession cannot
be kept up, and in this case a bed should be made in autumn, which, if
well managed, should be in full bearing for a month or six weeks before
and after Christmas. There are, however, numerous spaces such as those
alluded to where there is room to make a succession of beds. No person
having but one greenhouse need fear much or any inconvenience from the
odour of the manure--at least, not after the beds are earthed. The
couple of inches of soil over the manure would absorb any vapour given
off by the bed.
Wherever the cultivation of cucumbers or melons in pits or frames is
carried out, nothing can be easier than to grow large crops of mushrooms
after the melons, &c. are cleared away. The spawn may be inserted over
the surface of the little mounds usually made for the reception of the
young melon plants, and also over the remaining surface of the beds
which are generally covered with a few inches of earth. After the melons
have done bearing and the haulm is cleared away, the spawn will usually
be found to have spread through the deep mass of earth in the beds. As
little or no water is given or required while the melons are ripening, a
good soaking of tepid water will generally be necessary to encourage the
mushrooms to start into profuse bearing. If the season and situation be
mild and warm, the lights may be taken off; and if the sun be very
strong, the beds may be shaded with canvas or mats. If the season be
late and cold it will, on the other hand, be desirable to keep on the
lights, and even to cover them in cold weather.