FEATURED FUNGUS FRIEND

Cyathus stercoreus

(Bird’s Nest Fungi)

Bird's nest fungi are saprophytes and thus decomposers of organic material.   They are found most often on decaying wood and animal dung.  They don't harm living plants/trees.

The "nest" of this fungi is cup shaped and fuzzy outside/smooth inside.  The black “eggs” are small capsules known as peridioles which contain the fungal spores.  Rainwater or water drips into the splash cup and when the water hits the bottom of the cup it splashes out with enough force to eject the peridioles up to a yard away!

If the nest is on herbivore dung after dispersal they may germinate, form new mycelium and grow new fruiting bodies.  Or they might be eaten by another herbivore where after 'deposit' they may germinate and grow!  Spores of bird's nest fungi can travel through the digestive tract of herbivores unharmed. 

Nature's resilience...   Pretty amazing!

Garden Planning

Tis the season for designing your gardens and outdoor living spaces!

5 Tips to an efficient Garden Plan:

1. Have your site measured or obtain plans from the City or County

2. Perform a site analysis for your property. Example questions:

-usage of property

-what do you want?

-zones and sectors

-soil quality and drainage patterns

3. Draw out your site and create overlays for your tree canopy, hardscape, perennial plants etc. (as illustrated above) to accurately envision your site

4. Create planting and harvest calendars

5. Consult reference books, articles online and local sources for more information

We're here to help!!

www.gaiacreationsecoland.com

FEATURED FUNGUS FRIEND

Trametes versicolor

(aka Turkey Tail, Kawaratake or Yun-Zhi)

This bracket fungi shows off their beautiful bands of tan, brown, cream and rust colors radiating out from a central 'foot' -holding onto wood.

A very common saprobe, meaning it decomposes (feeds on) wood and other organic matter, this bracket fungi has medicinal value.   According to Fungi Perfecti's Paul Stamets and other mycologists this particular bracket fungi has immune boosting properties as well as antitumor benefits.

Resources for Fungi information:

We must pay homage to the various mushroom websites for their spectacular imagery and vast knowledge base!  As a start we recommend Mushroom Experts, Tom Volk's Fungi, MykoWeb (Fungi of California), and of course Fungi Perfecti.

Our Fungi Friends…

Mushrooms are the fruiting part of a fungus; much like the apple is the fruit of a tree (fungus is singular, fungi plural). Most of their lives are spent underground as mycelium (strands of cells that can go for miles!); but when they do show their faces they are beautiful, if not a bit odd, to behold.

The vital role fungi play in our natural world is still underrated today. We, at Gaia Creations, believe fungi hold answers to many questions humans have regarding restoration ecology, agroforestry, biomimicry, even medicine. Check out Paul Stamets as he explains the 6 ways mushrooms can save the world on YouTube.

For the rest of this year we are going to feature one Fungus of the Month each month to show the diversity of mushrooms in our neck of the woods. We also want to point out their value to living organisms around the globe (and we mean ALL of them!) and hopefully learn a bunch more ourselves in the process! Visit our website for more Gaia Creations.

Enjoy!