Growing Blue Oyster Mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus) in a Box Kit

I have to hand it to my husband and business partner, Brian, for trying new things all the time.  He loves to branch out and learn new practical skills.  In his spare time of late he’s been growing Blue Oyster Mushrooms for food and loving every minute of it. 

Mushroom Box Kit results 2011

He’s always loved mushrooms while I’ve never been a big fan.  I love mushrooms for their mycoremediation ability allowing contaminated land to regenerate and for their knack of creating the soil conditions my perennial plants prefer: fungal dominated soils.  But Brian, he just loves to eat them so why not start growing them too.

Volunteer plants in a Feijoa arbor guild

I love plants that volunteer in the garden.  Some of my favorite and most cherished plants have been volunteers.  They’re almost always sturdy and very healthy having found an ideal niche to germinate and grow in.  Two volunteers I found this year are equally useful and beautiful -Borage (Borago officinalis) and English Plantain (Plantago lanceolata).  Both volunteered in our Feijoa arbor guild.

This particular guild’s central plant is the Feijoa (Feijoa sellowiana).  Actually 2 Feijoas create the arbors’ archway between two of our gardens and each has a nestling of plants at the base which spread outward.  The Feijoa started out with only Lavender and Calendula for companions but this spring they have many, many more friends; loads of which were volunteers (or spreading volunteers, like apple mint).

Feijoa arbor guild plants early Spring 2011