Shiitakes -- Fresh From a Cube!

In advance of our Mushroom Inoculation class next week, I ordered a Tabletop Farm from Field and Forest.

My idea was to have actual live, growing mushrooms at the workshop for everyone to see. Well, the durn thing is already fruiting, even though I thought it might take 7 to 10 days to ramp up to production. Here's what it looks like:

I put it in a cooler area, hoping to slow it down some. It's a full week til the workshop. Yow.

Tasty Fungi

We all know what mushrooms are. We've seen them. And probably eaten some. But have you ever purposefully inoculated a log with spores of the fungi you like to eat? Well, if you haven't then you need to come to a class on How To Grow Mushrooms on Logs. It's on February 23 at 1pm and repeated at 6pm.

If you'd like to come, please call the office at 679-6361 and pre-register. By pre-registering, you are reserving a log for yourself. I'd ask that you bring a drill and a 5/16" and/or 7/16" drill bit. If you don't have these tools, we'll have some, but it'll take you longer since the equipment may be shared among participants.

We're going to grow shiitake mushrooms on the logs we inoculate. We're going to have a lot of fun -- and hopefully learn a lot in the process.

Beginning Beekeeping Session Cancelled

We've had to cancel the first session of the Beginning Beekeeping Course tonight. The speaker was coming from north of us where they are having much more problems with the weather.

We still plan on holding the entire course -- it will just be off a week. Those that have signed up, be sure to come to the first session next Tuesday from 7pm to 9pm.

Cold Outside (and stay that way!)

Over the past 3 days, I've seen the temperature at 4F and 5F on Saturday and this morning, respectively. We've got 3 outside cats who amaze me at their toughness. We built them a cathouse out of leftover insulating panels. We also make sure they have a fluffy old comforter inside their cathouse. In the mornings when I feed them, they saunter out of their house and feel warm to the touch.

Cats amaze me at how they handle the cold. And birds (we feed a bunch of them). But my plants do too. And they aren't provided anything to protect them. I took some shots of the ice that enveloped the bark and buds of some of my trees and shrubs over the weekend.

Here's my yellowood (Cladrastis kentuckea) bud encased in ice.
The bark of my young catalpa is frost-covered too.

January has been great (cold, I know, but great) since we haven't had any warm-ups. If we get some abnormally warm days, trees and shrubs can be tricked into growing. Remember April 2007?

As much as I hate to say it, I kinda hope it stays cold through February.

Beginning Farmer Program

Many people here in Pulaski County are rediscovering their roots by returning to the family farm. Some may not be moving back to their old homeplace, rather they are new landowners wanting to make a living on the farm. Regardless, being a farmer is cool once again.

Here in our area, we are offering a Beginning Farmer Program, which has been publicized as KyFARMSTART. It is for people who have less than 10 years farming experience. The program is very comprehensive.

Here's a link to my website where you can find more information on the program. Don't hesitate to call our office if you need more information 606-679-6361.

Beginning Beekeeping Course

I met with the local beekeepers the other night and between all of us, we put together a course for those interested in becoming beekeepers. The first class will be on Feb 9. We have to limit the number of people to 40, so register sooner rather than later. Here's a link to my webpage where you can get more information.

We've got some very, very experienced speakers who will be leading the sessions.

And I checked with the City of Somerset -- there are no ordinances that address keeping bees within city limits. You just need to be a good neighbor.

Insects are needed to pollinate about 1/3 of the food in humans' diets. Honeybees account for 80% of this. Apples, blueberries, strawberries, cucumber, watermelons, and muskmelon -- just think what it would be like without them. Not good.

Hope many of you get excited about honeybees by attending this short course.

Getting Educated Horticulturally Speaking

I came back from the Kentucky Nursery and Landscape Association Conference a little wiser than I was before. Here's a few tidbits of interesting horticulture information:

• The infamous Callery pear was an introduction from the USDA Lab in Beltsville MD. Shame on them. Invasive pears are now ubiquitous around Washington DC. The Mama plant at the lab had to be cut down -- guess why? -- it was falling apart.
• For every 1.8 degree F increase in temperature, our electricity use increases 2.4%. Urban trees are great at cooling the environment and should be used to help reduce energy consumption.
• Sadly, budgets for urban forestry programs are down 40%
• The US has the greatest diversity of ash in the world (and watch out, here comes emerald ash borer)
• The Chicago Botanic Garden was built on a swamp and had to built up in a series of islands. They have a new building which is covered with rooftop gardens which are accessible to the public.