A Bed Fit For A King

“‘The time has come,’ the walrus said, ‘to talk of many things: of shoes and ships – and sealing wax – of cabbages and kings.’”- Lewis Carroll

Imagine you live at Beardsley. You enjoy your time spent with Mama cat and the ducks and chickens (whom you have yet to learn their names). But, after a full day of play, you are sleepy and you have no place to rest your head. Where could you sleep? Maybe in a mushroom bed? It’s fit for a king, king stropharia that is—he’s quite a big mushroom, but could you both fit?

Or maybe, instead, what you should do– is ask Mario and his group what this king’s all about. And why in the world does he have his own bed?

Okay, so I’m hungry for some imaginative play. Maybe your mouth is watering for some mushrooms? We all have our vices.

Actually, if you are in need of some edible mushrooms, Mario and his group can tell you where you might find some (once they are finished growing). Mario and his group have been working on a few projects, the mushroom bed being one of them. Did you know that the King Stropharia mushroom can grow up to 20 cm tall and their top can be 30 cm wide?

This giant mushroom is not only good to taste, but it also thrives in complex environments. It will add lots of nutrients to the soil, which is what a king should do, right? Add more to his kingdom so that others can grow and strive to be better vegetables?

Well, while King Stropharia is watching his kingdom grow, Mario and his boys have other things to tend to. Not only do they take care of the CAC parking lot, which now has edible landscaping, but they also care for the Butterfly Garden. And today, the group has been building a cob wall. It’s not quite a fortress for King Stropharia, but it will be a great display of permaculture and creativity.

What is cob? Cob is a mixture of clay, sand, straw, water and earth. It is easy to make and fun to sculpt with or throw at each other,which will inevitably happen at some point. Here are some pictures of what the guys, Monty, Armond & TJ have been doing along with the help of a volunteer, Emily.