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Mushrooms (Boletus includes numerous)

Boletus includes numerous kinds, much like Agarics, but the lower surface of the cap shows very numerous pores. B. edulis is sold in many parts of the Continent of Europe, cut into thin slices, or hung on strings and dried. It is little esteemed in England. B. aestivalis, which appears in early summer, is said to be of excellent flavour. Various other species of Boletus have been recommended as of fair quality, such as B. aureus, B. aurantiacus, &c.; while others, on the contrary, are dangerous.

Polyporus is a very large genus, the species almost all growing from dying or dead wood, and being attached to the stalk by one side. The spore-bearing surface is usually below. The species vary much in texture, between fleshy and woody. Several may be said to be edible, but cannot be highly recommended. Fistulina hepatica, or the Beef-steak Fungus, like the last, grows on trees, usually Oak, and is much like Polyporus in structure, but is juicy. The popular name is derived from the great resemblance to a piece of beef-steak. Its weight may exceed 20lb. It is used sliced and eaten with salad, or like true Mushrooms, and is much esteemed as an article of diet. Catsup, or Ketchup, made from the juice of many kinds, is also a valuable product of the group.

INJURIOUS PROPERTIES OF MUSHROOMS. Some of the evils attending the use of these plants must be mentioned here. Among the more serious are the poisonous effects produced when many of them are used as food, these effects varying, according to the nature of the Fungus, from mere nausea to very serious symptoms, or even death. Many of the poisonous species are so similar to edible ones, that the only safe rule to follow is to make oneself thoroughly familiar with the latter, or, at least, with a few of them; and to use these alone rather than to risk the consequences of using poisonous kinds by mistake. Rules have frequently been given whereby poisonous and edible Mushrooms respectively may be recognised, such as that those should be avoided, or, at least, used with great caution, that grow on wood, or have a strong, disagreeable smell, or acrid taste, or turn blue when broken, or are bright red in colour, or have pink spores; but all such rules err by admitting hurtful, or excluding useful, kinds, and only familiarity with the individual species can be safely relied on as a guide as to what to use. But even edible Mushrooms may become injurious if kept too long before being eaten; hence, they should be used only when fresh, except in the case of the few, like Marasmius oreades, that can be dried and preserved for future use. Any suspicious kinds should be cooked for a long time with abundance of salt and vinegar, as the poisonous properties are frequently removed by this treatment. Among the most poisonous of the commoner Mushrooms is Agaricus (Amanita) muscarius, or the Fly Agaric, a large Mushroom, with a red cap, studded over with pale warts common in woods in Britain. This plants, if eaten, even in small amounts, causes headache, nausea, and delirium, and often convulsions, followed by stupor; and the urine of those who have eaten it, when swallowed, produces the same effects. It is occasionally used as a fly poison, whence its name. Russula emetica, with smooth red cap and white gills, also found in woods, is very poisonous, giving rise to vomiting and purging. Many others, more or less virulent, might be dwelt upon, did space allow. But, besides directly bad effects, many Mushrooms are scarcely less hurtful indirectly, by the evil they do to trees and other plants, unless, indeed, we suppose the fungi to follow, not to cause, disease. From this point of view, Agaricus melleus is probably the most hurtful of the true, or gill-bearing, Mushrooms. It grows usually in dead or dying wood, but it also attacks cut or bruised surfaces, and from these its mycelium extends to the healthy wood, and soon causes the latter to decay. Very frequently, the mycelium forms black root-like bodies, running between the wood and the bark of the tree, emitting short branches at right angles to the larger ones. It is peculiarly injurious to conifers, and seems to be almost cosmopolitan in temperate zones. Its evil properties may be regarded as slightly compensated by its being edible, though not highly esteemed because of its acrid, disagreeable taste. The stalk is yellowish, with a blackish tinge at the base, 3in. or 4in. long, at last becoming hollow, and near the top bearing a complete annulus. The cap is yellow-brown (or may show a greenish tinge), with the centre darker, and bears scattered brown scales. The gills are white or yellowish, and are broad but unequal. The cap has a peculiar earthy aspect. The pore-bearing Fungi are yet more hurtful than Agarics, and several species of Polyporus may be enumerated that are markedly injurious to trees. Observations upon their powers of doing harm have been made far more completely in Germany than in our native forests. Space will permit here of little more than an enumeration of some of the more generally distributed of the hurtful kinds, e.g., P. sulphureus, on Oak, Willow, Larch, &c.; P. dryadeus, on Oak; P. betulinus, on Birch; P. igniarius, on Poplars, Willows, Ash, Cherry, &c.; and P. vaporarius, on conifers. The nearly allied Trametes Pini and T. radiciperda are very fatal at times to Pines on the Continent; and Fistulina hepatica causes the decay of Oak. Wood prepared or made use of for building houses or ships is also liable to injury unless thoroughly seasoned and kept in a dry place; and Dryrot is but too familiar to many a householder, because of the rapid decay induced by the mycelium of Fungi, by which the wood is brought into a powdery, rotten state. The species that generally bring about this condition are Merulius lacrymans (which see), Polyporus hybridus, and P. vaporarius; but others also are known to be destructive.

Remedies. Upon the nature of the injuries done by Fungi, the remedies must, of course, depend. To avoid evil effects from the use of Mushrooms as food, great care must be exercised to insure that only edible kinds shall be gathered and made use of. Long exposure to heat in cooking, combined with the free use of salt and of vinegar, has been found to remove the poisonous properties of many species, but not of all. Should evil results follow the use of Mushrooms in food, the readiest means for the removal of the food by emetics and purgatives should be resorted to, and a doctor should be summoned without delay. It is hardly possible to prevent the death of trees attacked by such Fungi as Agaricus melleus or Polyporus squamosus, since the wood is full of their mycelium. Unless the trees are of very peculiar value, it is better to destroy them at once, in order to prevent the Fungus spreading to other trees. Prevention is far better than cure, and more regard must be paid to the preservation of those still sound than to keeping the diseased one. Young trees should never be planted in soil in which there are decaying pieces of wood. For the treatment of Dry-rot, see Merulius lacrymans. A few words may be added upon the geographical distribution of Mushrooms. Many of them are known to be almost cosmopolitan, or to be distributed in countries very wide apart; while others are, as yet, known to occur only in very limited areas, probably because of the small number of workers in this group of plants leaving our information regarding them very incomplete. The genus Agaricus is more abundant, and its species are more fleshy, in temperate than in tropical latitudes. On the contrary, Polypori are more numerous and striking in tropical regions. In temperate climates, Mushrooms are most numerous in autumn; but, in tropical countries, they appear all the year round. In respect to habitat, Mushrooms may be met with in all situations where decaying or dying plants occur, or where the soil is full of organic matter. Hence, they are most abundant in forests, on the soil, and on dead or dying trees; and some species prefer woods composed of certain kinds of trees-thus, forests of Firs and other conifers are particularly rich in Mushrooms. Agaricus affords examples of preferences of all kinds, some even growing on dead plants of other species of this genus, others in open places, but most in woods. The sub-genera usually show a preference for some one kind of habitat, e.g., Amanita and Collybia prefer woods; Lepiota and Psalliota, open places; Omphalia, swamps; and so forth. Cantharellus prefers grassy spots in woods; Coprinus, the neighbourhood of mankind; Hygrophorus, open places, such as meadows and moorlands, even high on the sides of mountains; Hydnum, the shade of woods; Russula, soil in open places in woods. Polypori are almost confined to woods, or to dead logs.

Mushrooms preserve badly as fossils; hence, comparatively little is known of them in this state, though a few, e.g., Polyporus lucidus, have been found semi-fossilised in the later formations.

CULTIVATION. The cultivation of the common Mushroom (Agaricus campestris) is invariably work of great importance in gardens, a supply being generally expected from those wherein the means of cultivation are at command. Conditions requisite for securing good crops seem, in many instances, to be of an exact description, while, in others, excellent results are attained when only ordinary attention is bestowed in preparation. This may partly be attributable to the seasons, natural temperatures, and other matters being favourable or otherwise to Fungus growth. Gardeners experienced in Mushroom culture, know with tolerable certainty, how a bed is likely to succeed from the time it is made up and spawned; but there are many cultivators, noted, maybe, for their success in other departments, who, from one reason or another, frequently fail to secure satisfactory results from their efforts devoted to Mushroom culture. There are various causes to which failure may be attributed, if any of the numerous details in cultivation are improperly executed. Attention from the first in the preparation of manure, is one of the most essential points; then, its condition when made into a bed, respecting the temperature likely to be reached by fermentation; afterwards, and last, but not least-to omit a special reference to minor matters-the quality of the spawn. Mushrooms are far more extensively grown, for various reasons, in winter and spring, than they are in summer time, the produce being then in great demand, and no supply obtainable from the open air, as in the latter part of summer and in autumn. A cool temperature, also, is more suitable to their growth, in the later stages, at least, and this is only with difficulty obtained in summer, except by those fortunate enough to possess a house or cellar below the ground level for devoting to Mushroom culture. The spawn requires a somewhat high temperature at first to cause its diffusion to all parts of the bed, and then a much cooler one throughout the later stages of development into the Mushroom as it is used. This is well shown by the appearance of the crop naturally in greater abundance outside when the temperature of both the earth and air are on the decline, and the ground is well moistened by early autumn rains.

Preparation of Manure. Manure from stables in which carriage horses are kept, is usually procurable for Mushroom culture, and, as a rule, none could be better suited for the purpose. It should be collected each morning, if possible, laid separate from the litter in a covered shed, with an open front. Here it must be frequently turned, to prevent overheating, and to allow of the escape of rank steam. When enough is accumulated to make a bed of the desired size, it should be kept separate from any that is freshly obtained, the latter being put into another heap, and, in turn, similarly treated. Each or every alternate morning, the heap first referred to must be turned and well shaken apart, until rank steam is no longer present, and the manure is just sufficiently moist to hold together when squeezed. The time thus taken in preparation varies considerably according to the prevalence of a dry or moisture-laden atmosphere. Some cultivators of Mushrooms prefer a portion of litter mixed with the manure, while others do not. The chief difference is the effect it has when the beds are being made, in preventing the mass from being rammed too firmly. The degree of firmness often affects the period over which the crop is produced, by shortening or lengthening it in proportion. This will be further referred to; and as good results have been obtained both with and without litter intermixed, the matter is not one of material importance. Formation of Beds, Spawning, &c. The manure, having been thoroughly prepared, as above described, should be made up at once into a bed, a suitable depth for this being 9in. in front and about 12in. at the back, if against a wall. The size in other directions must be regulated by the amount of manure available and other circumstances. When a supply of Mushrooms is required in the shortest possible time, the manure should be merely well trodden, to render it firm, but otherwise it should be rammed hard throughout with a brick or hand-rammer. It is not advisable to introduce the spawn at once, as its vitality may be destroyed if the bed should become over-heated. The highest temperature here recommended at which spawning may be practised with safety, is 90deg., and it should be known for certain that the heat is, at the time, gradually receding below that point. Small pieces of spawn should be inserted in holes made with a trowel, about 4in. apart, the manure so removed being used for covering it over. In about a week afterwards, or sometimes earlier, 1in. to 2in. of moist, rather heavy loam, free, if possible, from sand, which is very injurious, should be laid all over the surface, and beaten hard with the back of a spade. The tiny Mushrooms seldom appear in less than four or five weeks front spawning, and the time during which the beds remain productive afterwards varies very considerably. Mushrooms are often more in demand for various dishes when about half than when fully developed. In this stage, represented in Fig. 614, they are called "buttons," the single specimen shown being, however, that of an older one. No more should be cut when at this size than is really necessary, as it is obvious that the crop would be enlarged considerably by allowing a few days' more growth. A successional bed should be ready for spawning by the time the previous one begins bearing. Opinions differ respecting the watering of Mushroom beds. It is tolerably certain that watering frequently proves very injurious, and should be avoided as much as possible; yet it is difficult to keep the surface sufficiently moist when fire-heat becomes a necessity. Sometimes, when beds have become very dry, a good watering has caused a heavy crop to spring up; consequently, it is not always an injurious practice. The walls of the Mushrooms house should be frequently syringed, and the floor always kept moist, especially when the use of fire-heat is necessary.

Outside Culture. Growers of Mushrooms on a large scale for market, pursue a different system altogether from that just described, by forming their beds in ridges outside. These ridges are made on a hard piece of ground, and are about 3ft. wide at the base, the two sides sloping somewhat steeply to the top. The manure is collected from stables, and turned a few times, but it does not receive so much preparation as is recommended above for indoor beds. It is well trodden, and the sides are beaten hard into shape. After spawning, the whole surface is covered with about 2in. of adhesive loam, which is usually watered, and then beaten with the back of a spade. A covering of litter or long straw, varying in thickness according to the temperature of the bed, is kept over the whole, as shown in the illustration, to ward off storms, and preserve, as near as possible, a uniform temperature underneath. It is obvious that this system involves a considerable amount of labour not required with beds inside, in covering and uncovering for every purpose, yet it is practised most successfully and very extensively by growers for market. Another plan, which may be useful for growing Mushrooms in outside beds, and affording them protection in winter, is shown in Fig. 616. Any sort of frame-work might be roughly constructed above the bed on which to place mats or other covering, and a cord run over to fasten them on. Straw screens or thatched hurdles, are excellent movable coverings, and, being non-conducting, they are well suited for preserving an equable temperature, where the admission of light is not necessary. A crop of Mushrooms is frequently found growing naturally outside in places where they are least expected, and such produce is considered superior to that obtained under artificial cultivation. The insertion of some spawn in an old melon bed, in the ordinary turf of a lawn, or in a small quantity of manure in any old cool frame, are also methods, at times, successfully practised with but little trouble in the summer and autumn. Preparation of Spawn. What would be more correctly termed mycelium, is usually, in the case of the common Mushroom, called spawn. It is a dense, white, fibrous substance, found in quantity amongst old hotbeds, and in places where cattle are kept, these situations being most suitable for encouraging its growth. A dormant vitality is retained by this spawn for a very long time, if kept quite dry; consequently, the soil or manure containing it may be collected in a loose state, and scattered on beds artificially prepared, at any time. A plan which is, however, preferable to this, and the one most generally adopted, is the preparation of spawn in what are called bricks, from their resemblance in shape to flat bricks. These may be purchased from nurserymen, ready for use, at any season, about sixteen being considered equal to a bushel. Extensive cultivators sometimes prepare their own brick spawn; but only a very few, compared with the number who purchase it. One of the modes of preparation is briefly as follows: Fresh horse-droppings are collected and mixed with cow-dung, some using an equal proportion of each ingredient, and some a less quantity of the former, and a little adhesive loam is added to hold the other constituents together. The whole is mixed with liquid stable manure, until as soft as mortar, when it is spread on the floor of an open shed, until sufficiently dried to form into bricks of the shape and size desired. These should be set on edge, turned frequently, and allowed to get about half-dry. Then a hole, about 1in. square, should be made in one side of the brick, near the centre, and filled with good spawn, inclosing it with a little of a similar substance to that of which the bricks were made. Prepare a bed of fresh horse-dung, about 9in. thick, on a dry bottom; build the bricks in a pile above it, allowing a space between each two, and cover with litter, so as to retain a temperature underneath of, as near as possible, 60deg. Under such conditions, the spawn will spread itself throughout the whole of each brick, and the latter must be frequently examined and removed when they are permeated with a white cloudy substance, not so far advanced as to show minute threads. Good bricks of spawn should be in this condition when purchased; otherwise, any part which is too far advanced, or, on the other hand, not properly permeated with mycelium, will be useless. When removed from the hotbed, the drying process should be completed thoroughly, and the bricks stored in a cool, dry place, to arrest any further vegetation, until required for use. Other systems of preparing bricks spawn are practised, differing mainly in details concerning the proportion of the different substances which it is advisable to use in the preparation and formation of the bricks. Mushroom Houses. A Mushroom house may either be a span-roofed structure, or one with a lean-to roof against the back of a high wall. It should be situated as much as possible in the shade, in order that the internal temperatures may not be subjected to so much fluctuation, by reason of the sun shining on the roof. Hot-water pipes should be provided for maintaining the proper temperature in winter; but fire-heat is best done without as much as possible. The interior space may be fitted up for beds according to its size and shape, by having them on one or both sides against the walls, and a path down the centre; or, the beds placed above each other in the middle, and a path allowed all round, a plan sometimes adopted in span-roofed houses In Fig. 619 a section of lean-to Mushroom house is represented, where provision is made for placing three beds one above the other. Two are usually enough in a house of any shape, unless it is very lofty, as a greater space is then available for making up and ramming each bed separately.

No light is necessary for the Mushrooms; but provision should be made for admitting it, to see how to work, and darkened shutters may be placed against the windows at other times. The temperature should be kept as near as possible at 50deg., to suit the beds that are bearing; the heat of other beds may be regulated by coverings of litter, or by movable shutters made to rest on fixed ledges 3in. above the surface, so as to inclose the bed and retain its heat. Mushrooms are sometimes successfully grown on a small scale in tubs or in large pots, as shown in Fig. 620, where A represents the loam on the surface, B the place for inserting some spawn, which would, however, be much better distributed in small pieces, and C the prepared manure. Good results are not unfrequently obtained by this method; but it is not worth practising where a more extensive plan can be adopted.