Photo Dump/ Mushrooms in the City: Lake Merritt

Another late post with lots of mushrooms from Lake Merritt's Community Gardens back in...January? Haven't seen too many mushrooms lately, mostly because I haven't been out as much, but hopefully at the end of March I'll be trekking through the forests once again!

These guys remind me of hamburger buns

Mushrooms in the City: The Season Has Arrived!!!

It's mushroom season! FINALLY. The past week has been glorious, everywhere I go I've been spotting lawn mushrooms and new fungi I haven't seen before.

A little update: obviously, I haven't been as active on this blog, but I have been doing some neat things!

I started biking in September, which has been incredibly empowering and liberating for me. I also get to ride through the park, so I'm constantly stopping to smell the roses, touch moss, and of course--spot fungi. Now that it's storming, I'm taking a wee little break, but I do intend to continue biking. It's a great source of exercise, I am no longer dependent on Muni, and I don't use my car very often (and for all of you grouchy motorists, I am following the rules of the road and I hope you are too).

Usually around this time I'm making holiday terrarium ornaments, but due to my work schedule, that isn't possible this year. I've been hosting small terrarium workshops with an emphasis on self care practices with community organizations and events, and that has been incredibly rewarding and fun for me to do. Since it isn't profit-based, I feel pretty comfortable running these workshops and it really makes me happy to see other people connecting with nature in so many different ways.

Anyway, before I hide away again (but I promise, I'll be back in January), I'm going to share a couple of photos from the recent week...

The sweetest, tiniest mushrooms! My heart is aching because they're so cute.

One of my favorites, Xylaria hypoxylon AKA Staghorn Fungus

 Another favorite, Clathrus Ruber

I spotted these guys while biking to work. 

 For the grand finale....this one. I have no clue what this is, so if you happen to know, drop me a line :)! For all I know this could just be an pile of dog poo.

Life Lately: Succulent Babies, Coastal Life, and Mossy Mount Davidson

Brief update on my succulent babies: lots of propagation! The rains have actually jump-started their growth and I'm so excited to make more itty bitty terrariums for my friends!

I've been walking along Ocean Beach and I love when the beach is empty and the skies are overcast. Gloomy weather is the perfect time to walk along the beach and listen to music. I haven't had as many opportunities to go to the beach ever since I started my new job, but every time I do go I leave feeling refreshed and rejuvenated. I know I say this all the time, but I'm such a water/earth baby--I find peace of mind when I'm surrounded by the ocean, trees, mountains--you name it. It's a place of refuge for me. 

Weekends seem to be the only times I am free to explore, so on Sunday my friends and I hiked to Mount Davidson, where the fog and mist makes its home within the trees...

I spent some time scanning the floors and rocks and spotted a ton of different mosses and lichens...

Even more exciting, I spotted lots of gorgeous fungi coming out after the rains!

Lots of strap coral fungi on some fallen trees...

Spotting tiny little mushrooms always make my day, I still got the eye for spotting the tiniest little mushrooms! 

This was my favorite find of the day--some jelly fungi that reminded me of yellow skittles or jelly beans.

Spotting all the fungi made me especially happy and excited, because I haven't spotted any cool mushrooms lately. If you're into mushroom hunting, Mount Davidson has the perfect micro-climate for them--it's usually really wet and misty, and if you venture off the trails *just a little bit* you might be surprised at what you find!

As I mentioned in my previous post, most of my photos are on instagram (@terrariumtherapy), but keep checking back here--I have pictures from Portland, OR coming soon :)

Is it Mushroom Season Yet?

I've been on campus all week and have been spotting mushrooms here and there. Yesterday I spotted this basket stinkhorn (clathrus ruber) that hasn't fully come out of its egg sack, otherwise known as the volva. 

This is one of my favorite mushrooms--the basket/lattice structure amazes me. 

I went to Science Neat on Tuesday and a ton of researchers and mycologists set up demos and talks to learn more about fungi. This may sound silly, but I finally learned how to pronounce certain words. Like fungi. Almost all of the researchers say fungi with a 'juh' sound and not with a 'guh' sound. Is it interchangeable?! I am definitely not a scientist. 

Anyway, I really enjoyed the talks, which were held at El Rio in San Francisco. Science? Bar? That's a good pairing! It would probably be godsend if I were a frequent drinker. 

A demo on identifying mushrooms

Here are some of the things I learned...and I'll be brief (If i truly allowed my nerdy side to come out I probably would have been jotting notes in my notebook):

•fungi are more like humans than plants

•picking up mushrooms doesn't kill them...one of the speakers compared it to picking an apple, the mushroom itself is the fruiting body. 

•some fungi are predators--they "hunt" using toxins that paralyzing flies, worms, and nematodes.

•zombies may actually be real--well in the insect works. Some fungi invade the bodies and brains of ants and other insects, causing them to alter their behavior. The insects, ants in this case, climb to a tall grass/branch and clamp on using their mandibles and die. Once the fungi has dissolved the ants internal organs, a large structure comes out of the ant's head and releases more spores that other insects pick up. WEIRD but fascinating!!

I'm planning a mushroom hunt tomorrow, and I hope I spot some cool fungi. The rains are coming down hard today in San Francisco...hope this is the start of mushroom season! 

The Long-Awaited Mushroom Sighting

It has been a while since I've spotted any mushrooms. The weather has been sunny lately, but I spotted this little guy on campus in a shaded, mulchy area. Now I'm itching to go on an early morning hike. I cannot wait for the mushroom season, each year I get better and better at scoping out their hiding spots!