Homeschooled Shrooms

 Homeschooled Shrooms

We learn, where ever, when ever, always.

A few weeks ago, our class of 5 were out hunting, and doing some foraging. We found some Oyster Mushrooms. I wrote about that and our discoveries here. Today was day 10 of our mycelium growth and it seemed to be ready for planting. So, we did just that. Here is our progress.

Carter is stirring the soil/compost mixture that we heated in the microwave...it was frozen from storage in our garage, so it both needed to be thawed and heated thoroughly to 140deg F. This ensures any seeds, micro's or fungi is not already living in the soil.

Cylas has noted that worm poop smells distinctly gross..and exclaimed that he will puke. In math, they have been learning about temperature, and so reading the thermometer was a breeze :) 

 Here, we are sterilizing the bin that will host our growing mushrooms...Carter noted the sauna effect...and so both stressed boys relaxed in the steam. No, mama did not give them facials.

 After my class mates took off out of pure boredom from waiting on the kettle to heat, I was left solo to sterilize our growing medium...aka..food for our shrooms. We chose a mix of shredded paper and wood shavings.

 After soaking in boiling water, we squeezed out the excess, and allowed them to cool outside on the cold porch.

This is the point in our project where Cylas started to take an interest...I don't blame him. Who can resist white fuzz that smells awkwardly musty?

The boys take the mycelium covered strips of corregated cardboard and "plant" them on top of our soil/compst...

Here is a closeup of our fuzz.

My shroom boys posing with their batches :) I had taken a video of the boys covering their mycelium with the paper/wood mix..but it has failed to upload.
 I will try that again a little later

Here is our shroom garden...we named and dated the boxes, and added a humidity tent. Our storage room stays quite cool and dark, which these shrooms should appreciate. Stay tuned (follow my blog) for updates on our Oyster Mushroom Project

Fungi, storage, and our winter garden.

Fall has settled, bringing the end to the summers harvest and marking the turn towards colder days. We have taken rest after much work in storing and prepping for the coming winter, but all has not ended. Fall is a special season filled with a renewed flavor. Hunting has become a family affair, and a time to spend quietness in the forest and enjoy the abundance that God has given in nature. Here are a few of his blessings, and some of our fall projects. 

Above is our newly discovered Oyster Mushroom. I have long aspired to learn and forage for this special treat, and this year I was glad to have an experienced guide show me how to find, identify and harvest this delicate and tasteful food. There is much fear surrounding wild mushrooms, understandably, but Gods great gifts are everywhere, and plenty. Once learning and searching for knowledge on this food, I have found it is not such a mystery, as many may believe. These mushrooms are one of the easiest to identify, and in North America there are no highly toxic look-a-likes, which renders them quite safe for the amateur forager. In addition, I have discovered that this particular shroom is very simple to grow yourself at home...and we are attempting precisely that. Below shows my 2nd eldest checking on our mycelium growth, which has taken hold very well, and will soon be ready for planting.

In the above Photo is another form of fungi that has been an elusive treasure for our family. I learned about Chaga a good year ago, and ever since researching and learning all I could, I still could not find any growth. This fall, during our hunting treks, we hit gold. This fungi grows primarily on yellow birch and is full of antioxidants. Made into a tea, it's medicinal properties and benefits and plenty.

Below is out Carrot storage. Packed in moist shredded paper, out carrots are cool, firm, and still growing. I am well pleased to see that this new method (for us) to store these carrots has shown to be a great success. With little maintenance, they should stay fresh and crisp for the winter months.

Above is a photo of our onion harvest from the late summer. Many have dried out nicely and can be trimmed and stored on shelves...but to my amazement, many are still sporting fresh greens, and still growing! This is nice as they will remain ultra fresh for longer.

Below I have added a photo of the "web" in our laundry area. I am super cheap, and using a dryer for the winter months just seems like a waste when we have a warm area near our furnace that is well able to dry our clothing. I don't see the point in paying for all that heat and air circulation, just to have it blown out of the house. Drying our clothing this way takes 12-18 hrs to dry medium weight fabrics, so it's a little more time consuming, but works well for us. 

Lastly we have started a winter garden area in our available windows. Our ginger has taken off incredibly well, and our little sprout-lings look promising. We are taking a little gamble with the beans and peas, but with Gods good hand, we may have fresh pods and beans in mid winter. Below shows a close up of a tomato plant I have started using compost...I am a little baffled. There are a few different things growing in this pot...none of which I can identify as the Tomato that I planted....any ideas?? 

Learning Just A Little & An Update On My Cream

We are in full swing now for our Home School as our 4th week nears it's end (we are taking tomorrow off to make Lady Ash Pickles). Cylas is studying a unit on shapes, and Carter is learning time. 

For Social Studies we are reading a book from the Discovering Canada Series called "Native Peoples". I called the local 1st Nations Reserve in our area and enquired about activities that the boys could partake in as part of their studies. I was happy to hear that they are currently working on a birch bark canoe (which we have read about) and will be having a ceremonial boat launch upon completion. We are invited!! The lady I spoke to also offered the contact to a man in the community who is actively involved in some major culture practices. He has a sweat hut in his yard (maybe we can learn about this practice?). We also learned that the Lord Beaver Brook Museum has a exhibit which displays the Maliseet culture. We are excited! Carter suggested we built our own canoe!

This morning I confirmed registration to a Composting & Kitchen Gardening workshop for us all to attend in the coming weeks. This will serve as an agriculture study for us. The centre that is hosting the workshops will be sending me a full list of workshops available to groups, so we can look over and if we see some things we like, we can gather some people and request a workshop for our group!

The photo below is an update on my cream I wrote about here.

I let is sit at room temperature over night then put it in my churn in the morning. 5 minutes of labour gave me fresh made butter! I poured off the buttermilk and then cleaned the butter. Once the butter has been washed and lightly salted, I put it in mini loaf pans to mold, then place the pan in the fridge to harden. In 20 min, I take it out and I have 1/2 lb blocks of butter. I keep one out for fresh use, and freeze the rest.