I have always been fascinated by mushrooms. As a child, it didn't take much to imagine how they could come to life to protect the faerie folk that lived amongst them. Because everyone knows that mushrooms and faerie folk go hand in hand, right? That was pretty obvious to me when I was growing up.

I remember going on walks as a child and being so excited when I saw mushrooms growing on the ground or on the trees, I knew that there had to be faeries around and that I had probably just missed seeing them, because we all know that faeries do not like to be seen, (unless you are very lucky). I would sit ,for a long time, trying my best to be as quiet as possible just in case one did decide to come back. Did I every get to see one? I definitely convinced myself that I did and got very upset if anyone told me otherwise.

But even within the faerie connection, I have always loved how mushrooms looked, the many shapes that they take and the colours and then there is the underside, the gills, some of which looked like velvet. I love how some are so small and delicate looking and I often wondered as a child how they survived out in the wild. Ah they must be protected by faerie magic, of course!

As I grew older and my knowledge of mushrooms became greater, I really began to see how they play such a vital part in life's cycle. They are key to recycling organic matter, to keeping our soil healthy and facilitating the grown of trees and green plants. They turn all organic matter into simpler forms which is then used to nourish the soil and all plant life growing on it.

The mushroom is actually the fruiting body of Mycelium. And mycelium is something that really blew my mind when I first read about it. Mycelium is basically Nature's life support. If you look under a log you may see a web like structure, kind of like a cobweb, this is Mycelium, only a small part of it though, because the main body of it is underground. This amazing web passes through virtually all habitats.

Mycelium is tapped into the environment that it is connected to, reacting to any change that occurs and can unlock nutrients stored in plants and other organisms to be used in building soils. The mycelium can send nutrients along this network to an area that is suffering from poor nutrition to toxic waste. Under my foot there are about 300 miles of mycelium, aware and ready to act, to make sure that the soil receives what it needs in order to remain healthy.

10 years ago I finally managed to get a copy of Mycelium Running by Paul Stamets, a book I had wanted since it's publication in 2005. Paul Stamets has studied funghi for over 40 years now and has written books which promote the many benefits of mushrooms for all life forms. This book however focusing much more on Mycelium and how it can help to heal the Earth, by Mycorestoration. Their are four components of Mycorestoration

• Mycofiltration: the filtration of biological and chemical pathogens as well as controlling erosion
  -Mycoforestry and mycogardening: the use of mycelium for companion cultivation for the benefit and protection of plants.
  -Mycoremediation: the use of mycelium for decomposing toxic wastes and pollutants.
  -Mycopesticides: the use of mycelium for attracting and controlling insect populations.
  Source

This wonderful book also is a guide to growing your own mushrooms, as well as an in depth look at the different mushrooms species and their medicinal properties.This book brings real solutions on how we can actively get involved in healing the damage humankind has done to the earth, as well as healing ourselves.

To this day, mushrooms remain just as magical to me as they did when I was a child. Where I once thought they were protecting the faerie folk, it turns out that they are protecting the whole earth. And the mushroom fairy ring's that I always looked out for, it turns out they reflect the underground mycelial presence. There is so much more that I could write about mushrooms, but I will keep that for another day. So next time you pass a mushroom, I hope you show it the respect it deserves.

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