Paul Stamets: 6 ways mushrooms can save the world

Run time: 18:18 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XI5frPV58tY   Posted on YouTube: May 08, 2008 By YouTube Member: Views on YouTube: 0   Posted on DU: May 26, 2008 By DU Member: ClayZ Views on DU: 4960

 
http://www.ted.com Mycologist Paul Stamets studies the mycelium -- and lists 6 ways that this astonishing fungus can help save the world.

Amazing Video!

Worse, as some vegetarians claim they will eat nothing that has anything to do with an animal (including its byproducts), eating these fungi would prove... hypocritical?

It was very interesting and lots of fun. They have a show each year with our local Mushroom Society.

They boil a huge vat of straw outside in the parking lot. Then we cooled it on a big tarp. All who wanted the kit grabbed hold around the tarp and they added the spore. We tossed it like a giant tossed salad. We then stuffed it into a plastic bag and poked holes in it. We took it home and sprayed it with water several times a day.

A couple weeks later, like magic, we had a huge oyster mushroom colony.

YUM!

I think I will order a couple kits this year from Paul Stamets and try some other types.

http://www.fungi.com/kits/index.html

Organic agriculture requires the use of manure as fertilizer. I am a vegan but I understand that animals are part of the agricultural system whether I like it or not. We need to drastically reduce the number of animals in the system, but we cannot totally eliminate them.

There are humane ways to raise cattle, which usually produce cleaner manure (in the sense that it is not filled with with growth hormones and other potentially toxic substances). A system closer to traditional (pre-industrial) agriculture makes a lot more sense than an animal-free system as some (most?) vegans advocate. I think mushrooms fit well into a responsible agricultural system.

Most mushrooms grown for human consumption are grown on a compost substrate, not manure. The type of compost depends on the species. Keep in mind that the mycelial mass is the main body of the actual mushroom. What we think of as the mushroom (stem, cap) are actually the spore producing fruiting bodies. Even coprophilic mushrooms that appear growing through dung usually arise from the mycelial networks that were present sub-soil prior to the dung drop.

I have a small garden under a tree in Los Angeles. My soil is heavy clay with little loose organic matter, so I was amazed to find mushrooms growing out of my garden. I had "planted" garbage in the area under the tree. That is, I simply dug a hole and put some vegetable waste in it in order to compost the soil and make it more workable and hopefully more fertile. This video explained to me how it was possible that mushrooms could grow in such horrible soil.

I had no idea how miraculous, useful and important mushrooms are.

Just saying! :shrug:

nt

Also ways to clean up toxic wastes and protect old growth forests on a national security basis.

Definitely worth viewing, all.

Thank you, people really need to research these kinds of solutions... :patriot:

I watched, recommended and saved earlier but couldn't comment due to a Migraine...
Thank you and the poster for this very informative and interesting video!:kick:

Love the guy, and love that he's posted here on DU. K & R, more people should know about him and his research.

I hope we hear more about this process in the near future.

Thank you so much for posting!

After going to that class we learned we have honey mushrooms and Shaggy Parosal right here on our little acre. We took them up and had the pros identify them.

We learned that Lewis and Clark ran out of ink on their trip west. The Native Americans showed them the Shaggy Parosal. After this mushroom ages it gets dark ink like stuff around the bottom. Lewis and Clark finished their journals in mushroom ink. We were told that the spors would still be viable today were they propogated. Cool, huh?



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shaggy_parasol

We have a friend at Pike Place Market who is a Top Notch Mushroom Man! He farms and picks wild. He sells at the market on Sundays. His Mushroom Farm is called GRANDVIEW MUSHROOMS. We have learned a lot from him. Lots more to learn.


I think I will look into that mushroom book mentioned upthread.

We love TED and watch it a lot.
The mushroom news is so fantastic..

thank you soooo much.

FYI, mycelium is a stage in the life cycle of fungi. What we call mushroom are fruit bodies, the equivalent in their kingdom to apples on trees in the plant kingdom. Mycelium creates fruit bodies in the higher fungi.