MUSHROOMS GROW APACE THESE DAYS.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18972, 20 January 1930, Page 10

MUSHROOMS GROW APACE THESE DAYS.

BAD WEATHER IS GOOD FOR GROWTH. (Written for the “Star”). Unseasonable weather, certainly, but it has had one good result—a crop of early mushrooms. Whereas mushrooms in February are considered a good beginning, this year the shops have been selling them since the beginning of January. It is curious what a fascination there is about those little white-capped growths. No wonder the childish mind connects them with the homes of the fairies. Their rapid growth alone is like magic. However, it must have been a giant clan of fairies who inhabited some of the mushrooms which were found round about Christchurch during the One haul contained over half a dozen mushrooms measuring from 27 to 32 inches in circumference. The natural conclusion would be that they were only toadstools, but the proof of the mushroom, as well as of the cake, is in the eating. These giants have all been consumed with no resultant fatalities. No, sir, they were not coarse and tough, but as tasty and delicate a dish as one could wish for. Nor need the enthusiast go far in search of this delicacy. One of our newspaper editors gathered his meal on the way home, in no less a place than Cranmer Square. That could only happen under these unusual circumstances, when the mushrooms have made their appearance while the school holidays still hold sway. In term time the square is a glorified playground and those poor mushrooms would have had a shorter life than is usually theirs. A word of advice: If you find a good hunting ground, keep the knowledge of it to yourself. There is no more bitter experience than to set out early in the morning, basket on arm, and meet the friend in whom you confided the evening before, returning with_the spoils.