Jennifer Fox

I grow Bee Balm (Monarda) and Calendula in my garden.  I dry the Calendula petals and Bee Balm leaves and soak them in a sterile jar with half raw unfiltered apple cider vinegar and half raw local honey.  I believe this is called and Oxymel. When I feel like I may be coming down with something, I take a tablespoon along with a few drops of bee popolis tincture that I get from a local beekeeper.  I haven't been sick in a few years.  Knock wood!

I've been trying to treat morning lower back pain with supplements instead of popping ibuprofen and this combination along with daily yoga has really helped: turmeric with black pepper extract, ceylon cinnamon, evening primrose oil, glucosamine + chondroitin, and reishi mushroom. I also gave up wheat and drink a shot of homemade kombucha everyday that is fermented with fresh ginger.  

Love love love kohlrabi!  I agree that it's great raw, shredded into slaw.  I made lacto-fermented slaw with savoy cabbage and kohlrabi.  The kohlrabi added a wonderful subtle sweetness.  You can also slice it into strips and bake them on a cookie sheet for kohlrabi "fries." I also like them cubed and steamed, served with a little butter and pink salt.

I would say water bath canning is not difficult. I taught myself from reading and looking at videos online.  As people are saying, water bath canning is the least expensive and easiest to start with.  I waited until I felt confident water bath canning before I bought my pressure canner. My best tip would be this: be as organized as possible!  Carefully read through the entire recipe (from a reputable source) and have everything sterilized, laid out and ready to go before you begin making your product. There's nothing like having hot jam and hot jars waiting while you scramble to find the darned canning funnel!

That does help!  Thank you.  So if I see a bag of organic fertilizer that says "contains mycorrhizae," that's not really the correct terminology.  It should say contains mycorrhizal fungi.

What is the difference between Mycorrhizae, Mycorrhiza and Mycorrhizal Fungi.  Every time I think I figure out the difference, I read something that confuses my understanding.  Sometimes in the context of what I'm reading, it seems like one is a verb (ie. the relationship between the plant/fungi) as opposed to the thing itself, a noun. Is Mycorrhizae plural and Mycorrhiza singular or is it just pronunciation- I say tomAto, you say tomAHto? I'm beginning to think that each term is used improperly a lot as the understanding of it is relatively "new" in the scientific scheme of things. Can someone clarify for me?

I've actually been scouring craigslist in the Sacramento are thinking that oak is predominant there and I'd surely be able to get some fresh hardwood chips on my next visit.  Doesn't appear to be so.  Oak firewood fetches a good price so they split it and season it.  Even if I bought some oak and chipped it myself, it wouldn't be fresh wood. I'm still on the hunt.  Perhaps in my area this won't be a sustainable pursuit, but I'd like to try at least once. I can always buy alder chips and sawdust from Fungi Perfecti, but shipping is expensive. I like the idea of growing on the ground so they symbiotically benefit my edible and landscape plants, but wouldn't be opposed to trying some in buckets.  Do you have to sterilize the wood chips for bucket production? Do you drill holes in the bucket for the mushrooms to grow out the sides or just the top?  

Hmmm...I get my straw from the local feed store.  Since I've always used it as garden mulch, I never thought to question what type it is.  I will call them and ask. I do live in an area with very low humidity so I'm choosing the most ideal site I can in regards to blocking the wind and I have planned on rigging up some shade cloth as well.  It will have the protection of a wall on one side, fence on the other and is partially shaded by a lilac shrub. I also bought a pearl oyster block that I'm fruiting indoors.  Would that do well on wood chips too?  From some brief research it looks like most people grow it on logs which would be difficult for me to get.  If I get Elm Oyster, can I put it in the same area as the King Stropharia or would they compete?  I do have another spot under a cherry tree that I've been considering, but it's a little less protected from wind. I've also read that King Stropharia like growing on the corrugated side of cardboard.  I have lots of that!  I'm guessing that cardboard and straw alone wouldn't have enough nutrition though.

Ok, thank you!  I'll try the kitchen sink method

Hi All.  I'm an experienced organic gardener, new to the site and just getting into growing fungi. I've purchased a King Stropharia kit that I plan on growing indoors then transferring to a 4x4 foot shaded area in my garden.  I've been doing a lot of reading and chose this variety because it seems to be more forgiving about the substrates in grows on.  My dilemma is this: I live in the high desert and trees are not plentiful. All of the wood chips I'm able to source from local arborists are usually a mixture of pine and softwood.  I do have access to some fruit and hardwood chips but they are NOT fresh.  Which is most important, wood type or freshness?  I also have a lot of aged straw and homemade compost from shredded dry leaves and coffee grounds that I can add to one or the other if it helps.  Any advice is greatly appreciated.