Here is a project that will keep the gardener busy during this time of year.Have you ever given consideration to growing mushrooms? Just think your very own mushrooms whenever you needed them for cooking and salads. You can easily grow mushrooms outdoors but I think you are better off growing mushrooms indoors. You completely avoid the insects and diseases that are prevalent outdoors. I am not entertaining growing wild mushrooms but growing mushrooms that you know are safe to consume like shiitake,oyster or portabella.

It would be wise to try your hand at growing mushrooms inside in the beginning and maybe later you can graduate to the outdoors. You can learn to be a mycologist by researching and studying the different species so that you have the ability to identify the poisonous wild mushrooms that find their way into your patch of cultivated fungi. Incidentally a mycologist is one who makes a study of fungi.

I think it best to cover just growing mushrooms indoors. The first method of growing mushrooms would be to buy spawn,germinated mushroom spores,and using a growing medium such as sawdust,compost or newspaper to begin your growing mushrooms. Spawn can be procured from numerous websites selling mushrooms and should be accompanied by very detailed instructions. Always check to make sure that complete instructions,helpful information or supplies are included. You should never purchase from any vendor if you are not going to receive the complete package.

Now my approach in growing mushrooms,at least in the beginning,is to purchase a mushroom kit which is designed to immediately allow starting with the growing phase. A kit will include all the required components to grow several crops of mushrooms. There are many types of mushroom kits available but the most popular are the shiitake,oyster and portabella. These kits will allow you to grow several crops over an eight to twelve week period.

The benefits of growing mushrooms is not only from the satisfaction of a successful crop but can be good for the health.Mushrooms are very nutritious and are low in calories, with a very small amount of fat and cholesterol. A basic serving of five small mushrooms contains 2 grams of protein, just about as much potassium as a banana and three B vitamins. Mushrooms also are a valuable source of selenium, a nutrient found in meats that may be in short supply in vegetarian diets.

The other benefits in growing mushrooms comes from the delicious and innovative ways you can prepare them for consumption. They are outstanding in salads or how about cooking up some portabella on the stove with some port wine and worcestershire sauce and then fill them with a mixture of onions,garlic,peppers,more mushrooms,and spinach all chopped and bake in the oven for about 10 minutes. It is truly almost like eating a small steak. If you purchase the same mushrooms in your local store,they are already 5-6 days old. Growing mushrooms can be a great hobby which could also become a small business. There is a great deal of information concerning the growing of mushrooms at http://www.gardenersgardening.com/growingmushrooms.html

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We visited with the Oregon mycological society to see how they grow different types of delicious mushrooms for the home garden.

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I have been a gardener for over 20 years. I have decided to publish what i have learned for both beginners and experienced gardeners. My web site is at http://www.gardenersgardening.com

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Coffee may be the favorite stimulant of people all over the world, but they may not know how those coffee beans and granules are cultivated. Some even think that they come out like the powdered instant drinks that we are so used to. 

Coffee granules actually come from the beans of a coffee plant. Whatever coffee drink you love, be it plain black or those with whipped creams on top, they all come from the same plant. Many countries grow coffee plants in their fields. They are usually situated in the regions between the tropic of Capricorn and Cancer. Some of these regions are South and Central America and Middle East. Brazil is the largest producer, accounting for about 30 -35 percent of the market. Columbia follows, having 12 percent market share.

There are actually two leading coffee varieties. One of them, the Arabica makes up about 70 percent of the whole market in the world. This actually considered as the best in the world… when it is good quality. Incompetence and poor quality control has lessened the appeal of the Arabica to consumers. In fact, many are choosing Robusta, which makes up the rest of the 30 percent, shared with other much rare varieties.

Essentials of a good cultivation. Coffee plants are cultivated on plantations, so much like those that cultivate cotton. It is however not so easy to grow a coffee plant. There is a specific temperature, which will suit cultivation About 15-24 Celsius. Fluctuations in the temperature can even affect the taste.

The soil where the coffee grows should also be well aerated. This is because the plants need to have a constant supply of oxygen in the roots.

Water is another important thing when it comes to growing coffee plants. The plantations need about 1500 mm to 2000 mm of rainfall every year. If these figures aren’t reached, then irrigation needs to be instituted.

Some believe that altitudes also play a role in cultivating the best coffee plants. Most of the best coffees in the world are grown at over 3000 feet. This is perhaps because it takes longer for the coffee plants to mature at these level, thus flavor are developed over time in the seeds of the berries.

However, those that are produced at lower altitudes are healthier and stronger. They are more sickness and disease-resistant compared to other coffee plants.

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3 days – 1 frame per 15 minutes

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Learn about raspberry leaf tea and green tea benefits at the Types Of Tea site.

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One of the easiest plants to grow and from which you can reap fast rewards is the ever popular tomato.

With just a little planning and not much hard work, you’ll find growing tomatoes will satisfy your sense of achievement. They can be grown almost anywhere, in containers, greenhouses, balconies or the garden bed.

You can start them from seed easily; the varieties and choices you have to suit your tastebuds are endless, and you can expect abundant harvests, with few guidelines to follow. Home-grown tomatoes taste a lot better than commercially grown ones because you can pick and eat them fresh from the plant. You can get a better quality, tasting tomato from the seed catalogues and they give you a much wider range of tomatoes than any supermarket could possibly offer. The descriptions will help you find tomatoes that are exceptional and suited to your taste and environment.

You can start from seed or seedlings, why not experiment with both if you’re a novice. If you are starting from seed then sow them indoors several weeks before you expect the last frost in your area and they will be ready to transplant outdoors when the soil warms up. Aim to give them a minimum six hours of sunshine. Prepare the soil, ensuring that it is well drained. To give a flying start to your season adding mushroom compost to the soil which works wonders for the seedlings.

When transplanting seedlings, bury all the seedling stem below the ground, leaving only the top leaves exposed. This encourages roots to grow the full length of the stem, which is below soil level, giving you a large root system. This in turn gives you larger healthier fruit and is a little trick my grandfather taught me; works fantastic too.

If your particular plant requires staking, put the stake in the hole first to save damage to the rooting system. Be sure to water your plants as soon as you have transplanted them, you can use a seaweed fertilizer at this point.

When growing tomatoes make sure the conditions remain constant throughout the growing season, that means maintain a moist soil and do not let them dry out as you risk them being exposed to the disease blossom end rot, or you may find that the fruit will crack. Check the soil regularly; cheap gauges are readily available for this purpose. On the other hand don’t over water as waterlogged soil causes fungal diseases.

When growing tomatoes keep a sharp eye out for the first flowers to appear, you can then use a liquid fertilizer every couple of weeks and a little potash can be added at this stage. Do not make the mistake of thinking the more fertilizer the better; this will only result in excess foliage growth and reduced fruit production.

When the weather warms up use organic mulch around your plants to save precious water; to encourage more root growth and a stronger plant you can build the level of the mulch right up to the level of the bottom leaves.

If you have no garden or limited space then all is not lost; you can grow tomatoes in pots or containers; there are many miniature and cherry varieties to choose from. A 16 – 20 inch pot is about right, just use a potting mixture instead of soil. Remember to check your pots regularly for water as they will dry out quickly, especially in summer. A self watering container makes the job easier and if you can install a tap on the balcony, it would save carrying water through your apartment. Don’t limit yourself to tomatoes, with a little thought you can grow lots of other things like herbs, lettuce, egg plants, etc. just by using containers.

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Some mushrooms growing over a period of about 4 days. The video was cut short because a shroom started growing in front of the camera and knocked it over. This is the MYG casing kit in action available at www.mushbox.com

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Colin Price has been very successful in all types of gardening over many years. Find out how you can take advantage of his knowledge and success and create your own beautiful and productive garden at => http://www.EquipYourGarden.com

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If you’re not the type of person that wants to spend their time managing an elaborate fruit or vegetable garden, you might consider planting and maintaining an herb garden. While the product might not seem as significant, you’ll still enjoy the constant availability of fresh, delicious herbs to flavor your meals with.

First you’ll want to choose the herbs that you’ll plant. You might have a hard time doing this because of the huge scope of herbs available. But the best way to choose is to do what I did; just look at what you have in your kitchen. By planting your own collection of these herbs, you can save money on buying them from the grocery store while having the added benefit of freshness. Some of the herbs you might start with include rosemary, sage, basil, dill, mint, chives, and parsley among others.

When choosing an area to put your herb garden, you should remember that the soil should have extremely good drainage. If the dirt gets watered and stays completely saturated, you have no chance of ever growing a healthy plant. One of the best ways to fix the drainage problem is to dig a foot deep in the soil, and put a layer of crushed rocks down before replacing all the soil. This will allow all that water to escape, thus saving your plants.

When you are ready to begin planting herbs, you might be tempted to buy the more expensive plants from the store. However, with herbs it is much easier to grow them from seed than it is with other plants. Therefore you can save a bundle of money by sticking with seed packets. Some herbs grow at a dangerously fast rate. For example, if you plant a mint plant in an open space then it will take over your entire garden in a matter of days. The best way to prevent this problem is to plant the more aggressive plants in pots (with holes in the bottom to allow drainage, of course). When it comes time to harvest the herbs you have labored so hard over, it can be fatal to your plant to take off too much. If your plant isn’t well established, it isn’t healthy to take any leaves at all, even if it looks like its not using them. You should wait until your plant has been well established for at least several months before taking off any leaves. This wait will definitely be worth it, because by growing unabated your plant will produce healthily for years to come.

Once you’ve harvested your delicious home grown herbs, you’ll want to use them in cooking. Why else would you have grown them? Well first the process begins with drying them out. This is easily achieved by placing them on a cookie sheet and baking them 170 degrees Fahrenheit for 2 to 4 hours. After they’re sufficiently dried to be used in cooking, you can consult the nearest cookbook for instructions on using them to effectively flavor a dish.

If you want to store your herbs for later usage, you should keep them in a plastic or glass container. Paper or cardboard will not work, because it will absorb the taste of the herbs. During the first few days of storage, you should regularly check the container and see if any moisture has accumulated. If it has, you must remove all the herbs and re-dry them. If moisture is left from the first drying process, it will encourage mildew while you store your herbs. Nobody likes mildew.

So if you enjoy herbs or gardening, or both, then you should probably consider setting up an herb garden. It might require a little bit of work at first to set it up for optimal drainage, and pick what herbs you want to grow. But after the initial hassle, it’s just a matter of harvesting and drying all your favorite herbs.

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www.fungifun.org My longest time lapse so far. 1661 images were photographed over a time period of 5 days, 18 hours and 25 minutes. A Canon PowerShot G3 digital camera connected to a computer was programmed to take one shot every 5 minutes. Processing was done with Photoshop and VirtualDub. The substrate was rye, the casing consisted of peat moss, vermiculite and crushed limestone.

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Read about how to grow tomatoes and how to grow grass at the How to Grow Things website.

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