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| Auricularia auricula |
It really is a fascinating plant family. I'm not sure why a sci-fi author hasn't written a story with Fungi as the focus.
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I'm not talking about giant mushrooms or slimy fungi attacking innocent folks out in the woodlands. I'm talking about making Fungi a sentient being with a neural-network that spans the globe. Imagine the fun Doctor Who would have with that one!
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| mushrooms are the fruiting body of the mycellium |
I don't think I am so very far out there! Especially, when you consider that genetic studies have shown that fungi are more closely related to animals than to plants.
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| Boy is there a huge mycellium network under this fairy ring of meadow mushrooms |
Mushrooms or which ever fruiting body you see above ground is only part of the story. Underneath is the mycelium, the vegetative network of fungal threads (hyphae) that Paul Stamets calls a neurological network of nature.
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It's a huge molecular communication center that can be very small or spread across many acres. He writes that the membranes are aware, react to change, and collectively have the long term health of their host environment in mind. I think the other sentient beings on this planet could learn something from that, don't you?
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Pretty cool isn't it! But, even my over developed imagination cannot make these wonderful organisms the bad guys. They are far from bad. They are indispensable to life on this planet. Fungi are nature's decomposers and recyclers. Along with bacteria, they are responsible for returning decaying material to the soil in a simpler usable forms ~ nitrogen and carbon. Without them we would soon be covered over with dead plant and animal remains. Not a pretty sight at all.
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| Edible Auricularia auricula/Jelly Ear growing on dead hardwood branch |
I find fungi absolutely fascinating to look at and even more fascinating to ponder. They're used in medicines (think anti-biotics), for bioremediation of insecticides, heavy metals and tars, they play a vital role ecologically through symbiotic interactions with other plants and insects (mycorrhizal fungi) and are also a valuable food source for humans (cheeses, wines, breads, etc.) animals and many soil invertebrates. But, be careful, some contain toxins that are pathogenic to many plants and animals.
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| It's an irreplaceable part of the organic web of life |
We still don't know everything there is to know about the Kingdom Fungi. It's been estimated at 1.5 million to 5 million species, with about 5% of these having been formally classified.
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| Fruiting bodies of turkey tail, Trametes versicolor. |
Winter is the best time for Middle Tennesseans to observe fungi. The ground is littered with decaying wood and the winter rains with periods of warm weather have mushrooms popping up all over. The next time you walk around your garden stop and take a close look on the ground, turn those fallen limbs over and see what you can find. Look for Turkey Tail, Jelly Ears, or Meadow Mushrooms
You don't have to be a mycologist to appreciate fungi, you just have to be curious, look closely and remember, they're everywhere and communicating with one another!
xxoogail
Paul Stamets on
TED Talks
I do not yet know why plants come out of the land or float in streams, or creep on rocks or roll from the sea. I am entranced by the mystery of them, and absorbed by their variety and kinds. Everywhere they are visible yet everywhere occult
(veiled or hidden). Liberty Hyde Bailey
Gail Eichelberger is a gardener and therapist in Middle Tennessee. She loves wildflowers and native plants and thoroughly enjoys writing about the ones she grows at
Clay and Limestone."
