What Do You Do With A Sea Of Oak Leaves?

   Most people have it in their heads that Southern Live Oak Trees never lose their leaves.  In a sense, they are evergreens...somewhat...but not really.  They do drop all of their leaves within just a couple of weeks during early spring.  When the Southern Live Oak Tree is the most common tree in your yard (think dozens of these huge trees) and they all drop leaves at one time, you wind up with a literal sea of leaves. For the past few weeks, we have been wading through leaves to get to the front door.  By wading, I mean the leaves were at least a foot deep and in some places more.  When you think of the raking that would involve, you try to find other means of disposing of the leaves.  I did. 

  This past week found me pushing the lawnmower just to cut leaves.  This was quite the undertaking as the mountains just did not want to disappear!  I cut.  I cut some more.  Then...I cut some more.  Finally, the leaves were down to a fine mulch that would sift through the fingers with ease.  A lot of this mulch was hauled into the gardens where it will nourish the plants.  The rest was used in the pathways. 

  While I am glad that the leaves near the front of the house are all mulched, there are still three sides of the yard yet to do.  I figure I should be done sometime next year...just before the next dropping of foliage from the oak trees!  Oh, geez!  I hope not!  Seriously, give me another week and all of the gardens and paths will be filled with the fine mulch provided by these trees.  If I had to buy this lovely stuff, I would go broke!  Why buy when it is free for the taking?  I shall keep pushing that mower!  Good exercise...free mulch...pretty gardens...it is a win/win situation, if you ask me.

Wee Finds In The Garden

  Before finding the wasp nest yesterday, I had made a lovely discovery in the far corner of the garden.  While down on my knees weeding where the squash used to be, some tiny fungi caught my eye.  The wee things always are a source of interest so I made a mental note to bring the camera back into the garden once I completed my task.  Well, needless to say, the encounter with the wasps wiped the brain clear of any finds.  This morning, however, getting pictures of the fungi was first on the list of things to do.  Photographing the tiny things was no easy task as the mosquitoes were trying to eat me alive but patience was the key.  

  Bird's Nest Fungi are odd looking things.  At first, they are tiny, brown nodules that eventually develop creamy white sheets across the top.  As the days go by, the membranes split to reveal the "eggs" or spores in a nest shaped bowls which gives the fungi their funny name.  Contrary to what was once thought, the cups do not "shoot" the spores out but raindrops bounce them out of the cups.  The spores drop to the ground and then new fungi sprout.  This creates clusters of the tiny cups in shaded garden areas that are heavy with mulch.

  I have heard that a lot of folks try to get rid of the bird's nest fungi from their mulched areas.  This, is something that confuses me as the fungi is actually creating fertile soil from the mulch which is a win/win situation for true gardeners.  I have no problem with the (literally) pea-sized fungi.  They do not smell bad like some other mushrooms and are creating nice soil for the garden.  They can stay in my gardens!