Monday, June 29, 2015

There's an "Old Man" in my Greenhouse!

  For the past few months, I have spent a goodly amount of time puttering about the greenhouse.  It is one of my favorite places to be both winter and summer.  During the cold months, I can usually find the place snug and warm against the icy winds coming across the water. When it is hot outside, those same winds pour through the open windows making it a cooling spot to be.  With all that puttering about, though, things started getting a mite cluttered.  That greenhouse needed a good cleaning so I set about rearranging, discarding and generally tidying things a bit.  More than once, I was a tad startled by what I thought was a moccasin.  It would not be too unusual for a snake to slither inside searching for a drier place.  Plus, the wren that is nesting in the corner could possibly draw a snake in for a meal of bird eggs.  I was fortunate that those "scares" proved to be unfounded and no snake had made its way inside the greenhouse.


  What I had found was an "Old Man".   Mushrooms had sprouted up everywhere in the warm, humid climate held within the greenhouse. The coloring and blotches of some of the mushrooms were quite similar to a snake's skin and when you get a whole bundle of them together, well, they just resemble a snake. Pop had always called these "Old Men of the Woods".  I am not sure what brought about that name or if it really is the name of the mushrooms but I will most likely always refer to them as "Old Men of the Woods", although, "Moccasin Mushroom" might run a close second as a nickname!


  I should have actually known that the mushrooms were in the greenhouse simply by the musty odor emanating from the building. These mushrooms have a very distinct smell which, for lack of a better description, smells a lot like really stinky socks!  Smelling that bad, the "Old Men" had to go.  I toppled and tossed a dozen or so of the mushrooms each smellier than the one before.  Now, the greenhouse is cleaner and much nice smelling!  Sorry, Old Man, you cannot stay in my greenhouse!


Posted by at
Labels: , , ,

2 comments:

  1. Refugia SteinNovember 11, 2015 at 2:41 AM

    Well, I must say that I definitely would not have recognized those mushrooms as they were. I do agree that they look like snakes, and I would have not wanted to go closer and inspect them. The "Old Man smell" doesn't really describe the mushroom. Is it possible that the smell is related to the unique conditions of the greenhouse?

    Refugia Stein @ Container Domes

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Bayou LadyNovember 11, 2015 at 4:21 PM

      First, let me state that I do not think that old men smell bad. On the contrary! The Old Men of the Woods smell! The mushroom smells quite rank in a musty sort of way. It seems to be the mushroom itself that has this odor and is no way connected to the greenhouse. Even if these are found outside, they still have a stench to them. Back when I was a tyke, Pop taught me to smell snakes. This comes in handy when I tromp about in the Bayou. I can smell a snake long before seeing it. Cottonmouth moccasins have a musty, stale smell and this mushroom has a similar odor about it. When compared to the other aromas in the greenhouse, it stands out like a sore thumb! I use my greenhouse as an indoor herb garden so you can imagine how delightfully scented the place is.

      Delete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)