A Fungus Among Us

A few years ago I received a garden angel that was made out of an old bowling pin. It was hand-painted and had a country feel to it. I set it out on the edge of my patio, nestled among the pots, and would bring it in over the winter. But this year I had forgotten and it sat outside in the elements through what winter rains we have had.

I suddenly discovered it a few weeks ago and went to pick it up and bring it in under the covered part of the patio. When I picked it up my hand touched something soft. That definitely wasn't what I expected from a wooden bowling pin. I looked closer and discovered there were several cracks in the pin along the side and in the back. Growing out of these cracks were tiny mushrooms. The bowling pin must have gotten wet, split, and then provided the perfect home for some traveling fungal spores or perhaps the spores had been in the wood all the time just waiting for moisture. To me they look like baby oyster mushrooms, Pleurotus ostreatus, but I am definitely not knowledgeable about mushrooms. I think I will see what happens and see if they will get any bigger. I will definitely not eat them as many mushrooms look alike and since some are poisonous, I will only eat mushrooms gathered or grown by experts.

photos by Karen Metz