Mushrooms, Crimson Clover Flowers, and a Mint "Problem" 4-18-15

Here is the mushroom harvest that April showers bring. 

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Do you see any mushrooms in this picture? The hardest part about harvesting mushrooms is locating them. Some are easy and grow off the tops or the sides of a log. While others, like to hide under logs and require the harvester to lie down in order to do any harvesting. In our case, our logs are under holly trees, which as one can imagine, are painful to lie down in. However, that is the plight of a shiitake mushroom harvester to find that perfect shiitake mushroom. It is always worth it!  4-18-15

4-18-15

More crimson clover flowers are blooming. Recall from our last post on when we want to work our cover crops into the ground. We need to wait until “late bloom or early seed set” in order to get the most nitrogen from this cover crop. 4-18-15

Mint has its lovers and its haters. Many gardeners complain that they cannot get rid of their dang mint. Yet, those same gardeners sometimes go out and buy mint tea at supermarkets. 

Mint propagates easily. Just look at the rhizomes coming off what looked like just one plant. Instead the plants were all connected.  By chopping up the rhizomes and potting them, as seen here, one can have fresh mint for roasting meat, garnishing dishes, enjoying in teas, and in countless other ways. 

Instead of considering mint as a delinquent in your landscape, think of all the ways you can use mint in your kitchen. Since mint is a perennial in Guilford County, you can enjoy it all summer and fall until a hard frost kills it back. 

Publication on growing herbs such as mint: Growing Herbs for the Home Gardener by Forsyth County Extension Center

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 Here is an example of freshly potted mint. 4-18-15

Here is an outside view of our garden. You can see the Wall-O-Water in the corner above the herbs sign. 4-18-15