ghtly with straw
and test on the following day. Should the temperature prove to be going
down, say to 80 F., or 85 F., it is safe to plant the spawn; but
should the temperature be on the rise, wait until it is falling. One
grower has stated that his greatest success has been when the spawn was
planted at the temperature of 75 F. Should the temperature fall too
quickly and the surface be too dry, sprinkle with water at blood heat,
using a very fine hose, and cover the bed with straw.

The spawn brick should be cut into pieces, about the size of an egg, and
planted in holes made in the bed, about two inches deep and about six
inches apart. The holes are then filled up and about two inches of
garden soil sifted over the surface of the bed. Tamp the bed surface
gently with the back of a spade. Mushrooms may be expected for table use
in about six or seven weeks, provided the spawn is good and the
temperature has not fallen below 50 F. In outdoor culture the beds must
be well covered with straw or canvas, and had better be under a shed
roof with southern exposure.

The spawn used by this grower is the "brick" spawn, imported from Carter
& Holborn, London, England.

CULTIVATION OF MUSHROOMS IN JAPAN.

The Japanese are very successful in cultivating a mushroom which they
call "Shiitake" or "Lepiota shiitake." China also produces the same
mushroom, but of an inferior quality. The Chinese therefore prefer the
mushroom cultivated by the Japanese, which they import from Japan in
large quantities. It is cultivated on a variety of trees, but is said to
grow best on the "Shiinoki," a species of oak (Quercus cuspidata).

There are three varieties of "Shiitake," the spring, summer, and autumn
crops differing somewhat in quality. The method of growing the
"Shiitake" is given by the Japanese Commissioner of Agriculture as
follows:

"Trees of from twenty to fifty years' growth are cut down at the
approach of winter when the sap has ceased to run, and after the lapse
of twenty or thirty days, according to the condition of the drying of
the wood, are sawed into logs of 4 or 5 feet in length. Into each of
these logs incisions are made with a hatchet, at intervals of about 6
inches, and they are piled regularly upon a frame-work erected at a
height of about 1 foot above the ground, under the trees. The location
of the ground selected for piling the logs should be the slopes of a
forest, facing southeast or southwest. After keeping the