Pretty Polly
By Ruth D’Alessandro, The Wildlife Gardener The Wildlife Gardener promised Naturenet regular reader Pajamadeen that I would find some more pretty fungi for her. And I have not failed. While writing Archbishop’s Tutu, I discovered that different species of waxcap mushroom will appear together in the same place, provided that the conditions are right. So, on a hunch, I returned to the bit of ancient grassland where I found the Ballerina waxcaps. And what multicoloured treats I was in for:
There were some orange meadow waxcaps too. My photos made them look like rather dull LBMs (little brown mushrooms) so not cheerful enough for this post. Every day something in my little corner of the North Downs delights me, and I hope, Pajamadeen, that these little fungal jewels bring a smile to your face once again.
- Spurn Spawn! - 26th February, 2014
- Bluebells on wheels: axles of evil? - 2nd February, 2011
- Raising the ba: Wildlife and the Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead - 8th January, 2011
Dear Wildlife Gardener,
You are correct – You have not failed in your mission to bring me delightful fungal jewels and to put a smile on my face. Thank you! It’s very thoughtful of you to take the time to do this.
The timing of my discovery of your fungal jewels could not have been better, as I learned yesterday that an employee of a rehab facility, where ma mere is currently located for a broken hip, had informed my P.U. (parental unit) that she would be going home in less than a month. Not. It appears that not all of the actors are on the same page. Sigh. (This is akin to trying to herd cats.)
So…I was mulling over that rehab tidbit and dreaming up an antidote to it when I decided to browse through the blogs I like. Immediately upon seeing the fungal jewels, I smiled to myself, thinking that not _everything_ was completely upside down in my world right now. And I promptly fell asleep.
I haven’t seen any mushrooms in my yard this year at all, save for a clump of pedestrian toadstools outside the back door after one deluge earlier this summer. Basically, it hasn’t rained for the rest of the summer, and fall continues to be brittle and dry – although gloriously colored leaves should be a fringe benefit of the dry weather.
Thank you again for sharing the schrooms! I had no idea they could be so lovely.
Your impressed fan,
Pajamadeen
The Wildlife Gardener responds: Amazing the restorative powers of unusual fungi! I know very little about the fungi of the USA except that some of the edible ones here are poisonous there, and vice versa. Watch this space for toads and oak apples.