Mushroom World

In the northwest the sun is low and the clouds are even lower. The sky wears a veil of lace spun from strands of cold water. Since the ice melted here so long ago this slowly evolving world has been patiently growing new forest in a current of cold rains flowing eastward . . .



The cold winds sweep across a shallow lake . . .

The human denizens of the forest may keep close to their wood stoves . . .

but each moment above freezing brings life to the moist carpet of moss and decay lying in the constant shadow of spruce boughs, popular and pine trees. In the short summer season only a few weeks of warmth power the slow life of renewal. The lichen on the trees may be decades old.

And a host of fungi are patiently at work in the forest. . . .

These visible mushrooms are just a smallest fraction of the mass of fungi at work beneath the surface to breakdown. Just a few of the very many species to be found include:

This spiky white puff-ball - about 3 centimetres across . . .

And this exotic shiny purple species . . .

A relative of the shitake mushroom . . .

A large orange capped variety . . .

A golden brown capped variety . . .

A conical variety . . .

A more traditional white variety . . . .

And another white variety with an unusal shape. . .

This orange-capped variety has a spongy bottom rather than the typical ribbed shape. I am told this is one of the more popular edible varities.

In a future editing of this post I will hope to identify the species of the above! . . . or feel free to forward this link to someone who knows about mushrooms!