Why My Mushroom Grow Failed and How I got It to Work

This picture is my third attempt at growing mushrooms. Actually it is my fourth. Last fall, I ordered some spawn and tried to grow mushrooms in the buckets shown above. I prepared the buckets and boiled the substrate, let it cool, and added the spawn. Then I placed it in an unheated back room. It was a failure. This is why.

1) I was trying to be frugal and didn’t have a high enough concentration of spawn in the substrate.

2) The conditions it the place that I put the buckets wasn’t clean enough even though I did every thing that I could to create a clean space.

3) The weather turned cold way earlier than would be normal.

When I took it apart I found mold on the top, but the mycelium did start to grow.

For the second attempt, I used a much higher percentage of starter spawn. The buckets were developing very well then I ran into problems. Fruit flies got into the grow and ate the mycelium. Pout. Almost.

For the third attempt at a mushroom grow, we ordered a kit (actually two). Before I started the grow, I took care of the fruit fly problem, then followed the directions on the kit.

Success. We have had 3 months of oyster mushrooms. Pink and Blue. The pink stopped producing a couple of weeks ago. The blues just stopped producing. I took apart the the pink kit and reset a mushroom grow using my previous procedure. The above picture is the result. The difference being that I have pest protection in place.

To create the new mushroom grow from the kit, I sanitized everything with rubbing alcohol and cut away the outside portions of the kit. I broke up the inside portion and mixed it with fresh, boiled and cooled wood chips and filled the buckets. I discarded the outer portions of the kit.

Two weeks later, the mushrooms were growing through the tape seal. The pictures were taken less than 3 weeks after the restart.

Here is how to make the fruit fly trap

For more how to tips, check out the articles on my Buy Me a Coffee page.

The Fifth Garden

As we contemplate our path ahead of us, it is time to find a place to sit quietly and listen. As we listen, we can discern many different voices and messages. The rustle of the leaves tell one aspect of the story of the world around you. So does the bubbling and gurgle of the water in the stream. The insects, birds, and the wind chimes all have a part of the truth. So do the children playing in the park and the gardener working. When you listen with your heart, you can hear the truth from many different perspectives.

As you move through the many parts of your garden and your life, can you hear the different voices? How do you perceive your environment? Your world? What about the people around you? What do their voices tell you? What is the perspective of the child? What is the message of the water? The wind? The trees? The birds? The animals?

The Fifth garden is designed to reflect the stories of the ancient past, the sacred spaces, and the voices of the future. It is a dialog that if you can hear has the potential to complete the picture and create a beautiful tapestry. Can you sit with all of the voices and hear an orchestra? Can you take the council of the voices? The power of listening to the voices is options and more.

Some of the plants suitable for the fifth garden include red willow, pussy willow, wormwood, sun choke, and butterfly bush. For smaller plants you might consider oregano, plantain, and pennyroyal. Of course the Bodhi tree might have a story to tell and so will rhubarb. As you play with the concept of listening, what plants speak to you?

Naughty

It starts with the crying. She wants out of bed. I’m not ready, but the sun is up. It is time for me to get up and get going and she is an effective alarm clock. I roll out of bed and get my body moving. It was a late night, as usual, but the sun is up. I throw on some cloths and get my stuff, crackling body moving. The crying is getting louder and more insistent. It’s only been a few minutes, but she can hear me moving around. In her impatience, she can not relate to my old stiff body. I get her out of bed and take care of her immediate needs.

Then it starts. It’s predictable. It happens every morning, but this morning is more challenging than usual. She is tearing around the house like a whirlwind. She is underfoot and I stumble trying not to step on her. I try to make my coffee and breakfast. She’s tugging on my pant leg and running around and between my feet. I bend over and try to calm her. She pulls my hair. She bites my hand. She scratches my arm. Around, around, around, underfoot, nip, bite, scratch, jump, around, around, and all over again. I again try to calm her down. NO GOOD. I give her a chew toy. She chews on my hand. I throw the ball. She jumps on my feet. After about a half an hour, I’m frustrated and I have spots of blood on my hand and arm.

I grab the squirming puppy and gently but firmly put her on her and hold her there with my hand on her chest until she quits wiggling. Finally settled down. I pick her up and give her a cuddle. She licks my face. Finally she is back to a manageable bundle o chaos. I go back to multitasking.

While I fix my breakfast, I throw the ball and she brings it back. She is still tearing around but she is much more gentle now and I can get my work done.

This 3 months old border collie is an ornery bundle of energy. She is beautiful and has a good temperament. She is a quick learner. She has the potential to be a great dog, two years from now. That is if I survive with my sanity intact. Now that her excess energy is burned off, she’s curled up and sleeping on my feet….

(It is now 7 years later. The Bug turned into a beautiful companion. She still has an ornery streak. She chases squirrels and herds cats. She still thinks that my hand is a chew toy, but without the blood.)

And for a little bit more

Events

June 6 - D Day WWII

June 8 - World Ocean Day

June 11 - Full Moon

June 13 - Friday the 13

June 14 - Flag Day

June 15 - Father’s Day

June 19 - Junteenth

June 20 - Solstice

June 25 - New Moon, Next Newsletter

Rhubarb - The Pie Plant

Rhubarb is a long lived perennials vegetable that has been grown in cottage gardens for hundreds of years. It originated in southern Siberia and spread from there into China where it was raised for its medicinal roots. It was imported into Europe in the 1600’s and from there into the America’s.

It is a highly productive vegetable that is usually used as a fruit. It is one of the plants that builds communities as it is traditionally shared from neighbor to neighbor. It is lifted and split apart and moved with the household when the family moved from place to place with a bit being left behind for the new resident. Even though it does get fairly large, it is very productive. It is worth making space for, even if you have limited space.

Rhubarb is grown for the tart stalks which are the only part that is consumed. The leaves are toxic. The roots are sometimes used as medicine. The stalks are chopped and primarily cooked into desserts with rhubarb pie being an old style classic. My grandmother was famous for her rhubarb strawberry pie. It is delicious in cakes, quick bread, and crisps. My favorite is to cook it into a sauce that I use as a topping for ice cream, short breads, and biscuits.

The rhubarb roots and leaves can be used to make a dye. The stalks and leaves can be used to make a cleanser for pots and pans. The leaves can be used to make an insecticide. Our ancestors were quite inventive in finding uses for even the toxic parts of the plant, the leaves.

The Chinese have been using one species of rhubarb for at least 5000 years. The roots are used in Traditional Chinese Medicine to remedy gastrointestinal issues. It was used as a purgative and to treat sepsis. It was also used to treat menopausal issues and more.

There some significant cautions with rhubarb. The first and most important, under NO circumstances should you ever consume the leaves. They are toxic. If you are prone to kidney stones, you may want to avoid rhubarb as it increases the chances of kidney stone formation. If you are taking blood thinners, don’t eat too much rhubarb. In all cases, it is best to consume rhubarb in moderation. This is for information only and is not intended as herbal advice. Always consult with your health care provider for medical advice.

Here is the complete profile for rhubarb.

Buddha

Over 600 years before Jesus, Siddhartha Gautama was born the son of a king near the modern border of India and Nepal. Unsatisfied with his life, he left the life of privilege to seek truth and the path to spiritual enlightenment and wisdom. His story is beyond the scope of this article and is easily found elsewhere. This historical man is the person that most people think of as the Buddha. And his teachings inform most Buddhist practices today.

However, Buddha is not actually a person. Buddha is a title given to spiritual masters. It translates to “the enlightened one” or “the knower”. It is bestowed on one who has attained the ideal state of intellectual and ethical perfection. It is believed that anyone is capable of achieving this state with dedicated and disciplined study and practice designed to develop character, understanding, wisdom, and happiness.

Buddha statues or figurines are a popular addition to the home, garden, or alter, and may be a good focal point for the fifth garden in the meditation garden. As a focal point for meditation, it is a symbol and reminder of truth and the path dedicated to living a spiritual life. It is connected to the wheel of life, the cycle of life, and the eternal nature of energy. It is a reminder of the deep truths of life and the call to live and embody the 8 Fold Path to build character and a deep connection to your spiritual path. The Buddha is a symbol of listening to your heart and spirit, and developing and refining your character through dedication,discipline, and self knowledge. Each pose has its own connotations, so if this resonates with you, check out the longer article on my website and check out some of the more authoritative sources on Buddhism.

theatlantic.com

Buddha-statues.info

Plato.stanford.edu

lions roar.com

And I'm Not The Only One

Here are a couple of places to find more information.

Some of the best information about seeds and seed saving comes from the seed exchange organizations. Here are three that I use.

Seed Savers Exchange - seedsavers.org

Southern Exposure - southern exposure.com

Native Seed Search - nativeseeds.org

Some one I'm following:

One great source of wisdom is The International Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers and a sister organization - grandmotherswisdm.org