This Would Have Been a Good Year...

I am a mushroom fanatic. I've always wanted to try growing mushrooms, and while my basement probably has ideal conditions, the spiders and I have worked out an agreement. They get the basement, I get the rest of the house.

But in general, when you think of mushroom growing states, Illinois does not immediately spring to mind. Places like Oregon and Washington, perhaps anywhere in the south. You know, places that are moist. Illinois has it's fair share of humidity, but we can't even maintain a decent moss, so I'm pretty sure mushrooms are a waste of time and money.

But if I'd only known. If I'd read the Farmer's Almanac, would it have told me "2011 will be a good year for mushrooms"? Or more accurately, "2011 will have a higher than average number of rainy days". Perhaps. We may never know. Okay, so I could go look it up, but quite frankly, I'm feeling lazy. Deal with it.

Back to my point. I now know that 2011 would have been a good year to grow mushrooms, because without any assistance from me, my backyard has been busy  - growing mushrooms.

The second one is my favorite. That old termite riddled tree truck is one of my favorite features in the back yard. Especially now that the ivy has taken hold and is spreading. It's officially on between the Ivy and the Creeping Charlie. My money is on the ivy. Heaven help us if my mint jumps the pot. It's in the same area!