Pieter Visiting Marl Cave Mushroom Grower in Bordeaux France

Together with friend Harry Hollander and his wife Suzette, Pieter visited the Drouillard family in Bordeaux, France.

They too were Marl Cave mushroom growers and this photo is from 1978 or 1979.

Pieter still got his shoes and upturned pants stained by the marl covered ridge beds on the floor.

Friend Harry Hollander made this photo where they enjoy a glass of champagne with the Drouillard family, on their patio.

P.J.C. Vedder
culture moderne des champignons
This French version of Pieter's book got published in 1974

Related posts:
1965 Pieter visiting French Mushroom Grower Sarrazin near Historic Compiègne | previous post
French Claron Antique Postcards of Marl Cave Mushroom Growing | previous post
1958 Tragedy for Pieter's Mushroom Friends in Zichen-Zussen-Bolder in Belgium | previous post
Husband Pieter visiting Mushrooms in the Cave - Bradford-on-Avon in England | previous post

1965 Pieter visiting French Mushroom Grower André Sarazin near Historic Compiègne

Together with Belgian Spawn representative Guy de Man, Pieter went to French mushroom grower André Sarazin in Cuts, near Compiègne.

Husband Pieter left and André Sarazin to the right who is holding his sunglasses as this was on a sunny day in France.
André Sarazin did organize the 3rd ISMS Congress in Paris in 1956

They also for the first time had simultaneous translation! 
Wearing a headphone and some professional translators did translate...

Guy de Man was quite a character for capturing Pieter this way and writing in the corner: How beautiful and signing off with Guy de Man...

One more of such photos by Guy de Man...

But Pieter truly was admiring the excellent quality of these brown and white 'Champignon de Couche' inside their wooden boxes!
See their broad stems?! 
Hard to find such quality nowadays.
The quality that is grown inside those marl caves always looks excellent!

Here Pieter is with André Sarrazin at his compost place in Cuts.
This was the first grower to also have some kind of tunnel. Pieter walks on the concrete edge of a kind of cellar that was aerated from below.
Nowadays we call it a bunker, not a tunnel...

Bottom left you see Paris and to the north east you see Compiègne and Cuts where the mushroom farm from André Sarrazin was located.
André Sarrazin's marl cave business at six locations, once was the largest private owned mushroom business in France... He started it in 1958.
Sadly, André Jr. and the successor, got killed in an accident and André Sr. succumbed to grief...
The company got sold but ceased to exist as it is very difficult for mechanizing inside those rather low ceiling caves... To continue growing in bags is hard physical labor!
~
André Sarrazin did take Pieter to Compiègne, the historic location where on November 11, 1918 the Armistice agreement was signed to end WWI.

But a nasty revenge by Adolf Hitler in June of 1940...

The untold story of the 1918 Armistice just click it for a 2 minute video right at the top.
~
One year while traveling in France, Pieter did show me the area as well.

History lessons we ought to all learn from!

French Claron Antique Postcards of Marl Cave Mushroom Growing

In the 1980s we did receive from Claron, Vendôme/France, for New Year, a package with Antique Postcards about French Marl Cave Mushroom Growing

This postcard shows the hard work of harvesting inside such Marl Caves in France.

They have made ridge beds on the floor from their compost... covered with crushed marl.

Preparing the substrate: composting, then making ridge beds inside the caves.

The support culture of fungi is the compost, which serves as a food substrate to fungi.

It must be prepared. Compost is a mixture of horse manure (75%) and straw (25%). Manure and straw are not directly assimilated by the Paris champignon (button mushroom), for insufficiently being decomposed; the operation is therefore to obtain a rich compost fermentation of these two ingredients. Just click for more photos and info on the short link and click through...

Here you see a Mushroom Grower at the entrance of the cave...

Now the men proudly pose with their harvested mushrooms...

Découvrez comment sont cultivés les champignons à Villers–Cotterêts ←click for short video where in the end the person shows this photo of his Grandfather!

Well, don't know if the above video is telling the truth...

Came upon this historic information with the same photo and more: The Delalande Family, La Cave des Roches. 4 centuries of history ←click link and see below image:

Showing off their harvest here and even a French kitty is posing in this picture!

This was the card: CLARON and its collaborators wish you all the best for the new year.
They were the producers of Mushroom Spawn at the time...

Some unique history that I wanted to share with my readers!

Related posts:
1958 Tragedy for Pieter's Mushroom Friends in Zichen-Zussen-Bolder in Belgium | previous post
Husband Pieter visiting Mushrooms in the Cave - Bradford-on-Avon in England | previous post

Blink TV Australia used our Marl Cave Mushroom Growing Image in Guillaume's Paris Episode 9 | later post where Pieter's Postcards got used by permission for TV series

1958 Tragedy for Pieter's Mushroom Friends in Zichen-Zussen-Bolder in Belgium

Those caves in the Limburg village of Zichen-Zussen-Bolder in Belgium, were again the result of sawing blocks of marl, or soft stone as it is also called, for building cities.
Also here, husband Pieter came for a frequent visit in Belgium, just across the Dutch border.
For his boss, Pieter Bels, my Pieter wrote a kind of a speech, in the summer of 1957.
Read more below first screenshot...

De Roosburgramp click for video from where I got this screenshot...
There were always quite some adventures in Belgium, especially when visiting Gérard Kinet. First they had bacon breakfast at Jacquemin. That was being generously served with cognac. It caused them having difficulty walking straight, between those mushroom beds inside the caves, with their trouser legs pushed up!

On December 23, 1958 harvesting went on inside the caves of Zichen-Zussen-Bolder in Belgium.
Prior to Christmas for having mushrooms available for special dinners...
Above screenshot is from video Roosburg 1958-2008 (link is further down below)

Belgium: Mushroom Galleries Cave In 20 Feared Dead 1958 click link for short video
Collapse of the quarry

It seems to be that one of the main reasons for such a disastrous collapse, was the gradual widening of underground corridors, plus taking away some support pillars.
The main reason for doing so, was because of transport equipment being able to pass.
It also was mentioned that the mine inspectors sometimes closed an eye...
Slowly mushroom growing had also shifted away from the one layer beds on the floor to stacked trays.
The difference can clearly be seen between the first and second image above.

Screenshots from video Roosburg 1958-2008 just click it

Screenshot from video Roosburg 1958-2008

Pieter's mushroom friend Gérard Kinet, as well as others he knew very well, were among the 18 that lost their lives...

Gerard's body was never found, only 7 got recovered.

Gerard's father-in-law Willem Heynen was heartbroken and the Bishop tried to console him as he'd lost his son Pierre, father of 7 children and his son-in-law Gérard Kinet, father of 2 children...

The Belgian disaster

Marked in blue from this Pdf: They are Pierre Heynen, Belgium's largest grower, and Gérard Kinet, Belgium's best grower.

Several Dutch mushroom growers knew them personally. Kinet participated in October in the excursion to England; we still vividly remember the pleasant and comradely relations with him. Several Dutch growers have visited his nursery and that of Pierre Heynen several times and learned a lot from them because they were so open and enjoyable to share their experiences. Both were generous hosts. (Photos Bartok)

Mrs. Kinet, is a sister from Pierre Heynen (DOUBLE TRAGEDY!).

Found in the Dutch publication of 1959 - 1 de Champignon - cultuur.

Husband Pieter (left center) and his colleague G.J.A. Van Soest, carry here the wreath from the Dutch mushroom growers, 27 December of 1958 (Photo Steegs)

Found in the Dutch magazine of January/February 1959: de Champignon - cultuur.

That day, Pieter and his colleague went by car together with their boss Drs. P.J. Bels for attending the memorial service.

Below is from the November 1958 Dutch magazine: de Champignon - cultuur about photos from Gérard Kinet, when he went with Pieter and others to the UK.

With the pigeons at Trafalgar Square, London

From left to right seated: Vervuurt, Ambrosius, Kinet, Everts.

Standing: Haerkens, mayor v. d. Riet, ladies Steeghs and Bels, Sieptman, Arts, van Soest. (Photo Steegs) from de Champignon - cultuur 1958 - 6  ←just click it. Sorry ISMS did remove it so this is from my personal Google My Drive. Click top right for download!

Gérard Kinet is holding a pigeon... who could know then, that less than 2 months later these would seem to be his last photographs taken.

Husband Pieter was the 1st Assistant for the Dutch Proefstation (Experimental Station) and responsible for Training, he also was the main writer for their Dutch magazine from link above... 

Restaurant Grandcafé Momus - Vrijthof Maastricht, The Netherlands click through via link

Pieter did drive to Maastricht where he gave his training courses at Restaurant Grandcafé  Momus - Vrijthof, Maastricht where also André Rieu gives his concerts... Famous spot in the South of my Province Limburg.

In this photo, taken in maybe Bournemouth where they went to the 2-day MGA exhibition and lectures, seated on the right is again Gerard Kinet (to the left of him is G.J.A. Van Soest who carried the large wreath, together with husband Pieter at Gérard's and others' funeral...)...

Just posted them here in case his relatives ever search for it.

My husband Pieter is standing to the left, without glasses at that time.

~

On December 31, they recovered the body of the youngest person and on February 17, that of a 21-year old...

On December 27, 1958 was the funeral for 5 of those that got recovered...

*

My Pieter is somewhere amongst the crowd, he went to their funeral carrying with his colleague the large wreath as seen here above.

Quite a tragedy!

May they all R.I.P.

Good to see that this post has been frequently visited...

Our archiving found a purpose.

Related link:

Pieter Carrying Wreath with G.J.A. Van Soest at Memorial of Friends Pierre Heynen, Gérard Kinet etc., Belgium

Husband Pieter visiting Mushrooms in the Cave - Bradford-on-Avon in England | previous post by me
Husband Pieter's Fond Relationship with Mushroom Growers in  the U.K. | previous post by me showing the visit to the UK in which Gerard Kinet also was part of the group.

Husband Pieter visiting Mushrooms in the Cave - Bradford-on-Avon in England

For husband Pieter it sure was not the first time to visit a mushroom farm inside the caves, as he would be doing in South-West England.
Pieter did sleep and stay at the home of the manager. Originally in this area were flax growers.

Mushroom Growing 1963 click on link for short 2:41 min. video

Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire.
Once the stone that built Bath was found in this mine, now it is used for growing mushrooms.
Various shots of women wearing miner's helmets. The women walk in the entrance to the mine carrying buckets, lead by team leader Dolly Laywood. Inside, the women pick the mushrooms growing in stacks of trays and place them in baskets. C/U of mushrooms. M/S of cave roof. C/U of candle stick attached to the cave wall.
These Marl Caves consisted of soft stone, that was sawn out for building cities!

Bradford-on-Avon Museum shows MUSHROOM CULTIVATION just click it.
Photos with the beds on the ground must be from before WWII era as they were growing already inside wooden trays by the time husband Pieter visited them.

BBC NEWS 4 April 2011 Bradford on Avon mushroom farm cave tenants sought click link
A 'rare opportunity' to rent space for 'unusual uses'...
No more commercial mushroom growing!

 Saturday September 29th 2018
Police find £1 million cannabis cave in hidden tunnels below picturesque village at disused quarry just click on link

So that was quite a change from quarry to commercial mushroom growing and into cannabis...

WHO would have guessed this at the time that husband Pieter visited?!

Thanks for reading along about husband Pieter's history in mushroom cultivation.

Related links:
Visiting A.G. Linfield Mushroom Compost Facility in England | previous post by me
Husband Pieter met with Darlington Spawn Makers and Fred Atkins in the U.K. | previous post by me
SO Happy for Having Met Another WRITING Mushroom Wife in the U.K. | previous post by me

Husband Pieter's Fond Relationship with Mushroom Growers in  the U.K. | previous post about Pieter's very first visit to a Mushroom Farm in England