it till it
has passed off before putting on the soil. The soil used should be
decomposed turfy loam, moderately dry, so as to bear compression without
running together like paste, but damp enough to become firm, close, and
even, when beaten closely. About two inches in thickness should be put on,
and this is to be beaten down quite firm and close. The beds are then
finished. It is as well to cover the surface with a thin layer of short
hay, to prevent it becoming quite dry. Mushroom beds seldom require water;
after they have been some time in bearing, the beds sometimes get dry, and
in such cases, if they have a moderate soaking of _tepid_ water, and the
surface is covered as before, a new crop will spring up. The covering is
best removed when the beds are in bearing. It is seldom advisable to apply
water when the beds are coming into bearing. Water should never be used in
any other than a tepid state.

Mushrooms are most prized in the summer, though the atmosphere of a
cucumber-house would not then be suitable for them, unless the space about
them could be closed in, so as to retain a close, somewhat humid
atmosphere. They would succeed very well without being enclosed, during
the season for forcing cucumbers.

Under the treatment which has been detailed, the beds would usually come
into bearing in about six weeks from the time of spawning; and, under
favourable circumstances, would continue in bearing for two or three
months.

Footnotes:

[1] The Journal of the Horticultural Society of London, vol. I. p. 114.

[2] Ib. vol. II. p. 29.

[3] Gardener's Journal, 1847, p. 339.

[4] Gardener's Chronicle 1847.

Transcriber's Notes:

Passages in italics are indicated by _underscore_.

The following misprints have been corrected:
"influenee" corrected to "influence" (page 21)
"circumstauces" corrected to "circumstances" (page 32)
"analagous" corrected to "analogous" (page 36)
"shonld" corrected to "should" (page 36)
"distributiug" corrected to "distributing" (page 40)
"appropaiated" corrected to "appropriated" (page 55)
"conditious" corrected to "conditions" (page 72)

Other than the corrections listed above, printer's inconsistencies in
spelling and hyphenation usage have been retained.

Punctuation has been corrected without note.

End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Theory and Practice, Applied to the
Cultivation of the Cucumber in the Winter Season, by Thomas Moore