Mushroom Culture: Its Extension and Improvement

om-house at ba

it. And first of the mushroom-house itself. Its construction is very simple: the conditions to be obtained are equable temperature, secured

lves for making the beds upon are of slate 1? in. thick, or of stone 2? in. thick, built into the walls, and into brick p

und-plan of

rpose of admitting a little light, and air when necessary. The engraving (fig. 2), shows a house of this description,

f the house should be kept moderately moist, the undersid

of unheated m

ion of prece

the external temperature, as will be seen by the engraving. The walls are hollow, and banked round with the soil excavated from the interior. The roof is thatched with reeds, and the ends stud-work, lined inside with boards, and outside with split larch poles: the cavity to be filled with sawdust or cut straw;

of mushroom-ho

llustrations of mushroom-houses are desirable here. Figures 5 and 6 exhibit th

lan of mushroom-

om-houses rhubarb and sea-kale may be easily for

d that it may be heated from the boilers of adjacent hothouses. The best position for the mushroom-house is against a north wall. The usual

ing the arches under and over the beds, the thoroughfare a is the middle, and the position of the hot-water pipes, c; b is

hroom-house

hould be made, having a stone and cast-iron stopper, with a folding ring. The whole roof of the mushroom-house is covered over with pavement, which at the same time forms the floor of the shed above. Mr. Forsyth objects to cast-iron shelves "on

room-house a

g.

tering, which Mr. Patrick thinks a very important precaution in mushroom culture. Ventilation is effected by a slide in the door, and a wooden trunk up through the arch and roof, with a slide in it also. We do not exactly see the motive of Mr. Patrick, whom we have long known and esteemed as one of the best gardeners in England, in adopting the span roof over this house, as, from its situation behind the garden wall, a lean-to roof would have been cheaper and carried off the rain-wate

ussian mus

ance of 3? feet from the outside walls, to hold up the sides of the lower beds, a a, and form one side of the air-flue, t u t u, leaving 3 feet up the middle, t x t, of the house for the floor. Upon these walls, v v, lay planks, t u, 4? inches wide and 3 inches thick, in which to mortise the standards, t k, which support the shelves. These standards should be 3? inches square, and placed 4 feet 6 inches asunder, and fastened at the top to the ceiling joists. When the standards are set up, fix the cross-bearers, i n i n, that are to support the shelves, o o, mortising one end of each into the standards, n, the other into the walls, i. The first set of bearers should be 2 feet from the floor, and each succeeding set 2 feet from that below it. Having thus fixed the uprights, t k, and bearers, i n, at such a height as the building will admit, proceed to form the shelves, o o, with boards 1? inches thick, observing to place a board, d d, 8 inches broad and 1 inch thick, in the front of each shelf, to support the front of the beds. Fasten this board on the outside standards, that the width of the beds may not be diminished. Th

gratings for this purpose is well worth a trial, as by this means we may be