Incorporating King Stropharia into your garden
Stropharia rugosoannulata, King stropharia otherwise known as the Wine cap or garden giant is a great companion for any garden system. These mushrooms rightfully earn themself another common name…Some grow thick long stems as long as 40cm and caps that span 60cm or more.
King Stropharia young and old. These specimens were form Living Agroecology, agroforestry plot at the farm in Byron Bay.
King Stropharia has a dark burgundy cap that can fade with age and sun-exposer to a golden brown. The gills are pale when young and mature into a dark purple to purple grey with a spore print of dark purple to black. The stem is white and pertains a bulbous base and a thick frilly fairy skirt (technically called an annulus). In fact, it’s latin name, ‘rugosoannulata’ means wrinkled ring referencing this delicate feature.
Classified as a primary and secondary decomposers, king Stropharia can break down woody material and thrive in wood free soils, working in concert with with a team of microorganisms in the decomposition of organic matter.
What magical properties does this fungi have to offer your garden of nourishment?
To name a few…
Unlock and stores Vital nutrients such as phosphorous and nitrogen for plants reducing leaching
Converting Phosphorous for plant bioavailability
Healthy soil structure
Medicine for bees 🐝
Medicinal enzymes for soil, plants, animals and insects
Filter coliform bacteria such as E coli
Parasitise and consume Root Feeding Nematodes
Remove Heavy metals from soil
Food for human, animal, insects
The white mycelium of fungi have the ability to penetrate into far reached nooks and crannies of soil that plant roots struggle to access. Mycelium excretes enzymes and acids to decompose surrounding material and absorb nutrients needed. In doing so, they unlock vital vitamins and minerals such as phosphorous and nitrogen, key elements for plant development, flower and seed set. King Stropharia stores these nutrients in its mycelium, distributing to plants and preventing leaching or run off of these vital minerals. One step further from simply unlocking these nutrients, King Stropharia converts phosphorous to a bioavailable form which plants can access. Additionally, the matrix of mycelium throughout the soil helps improve soil structure and form soil aggregates.
The specialised enzymes and acids King Stropharia create are potent medicine for nature, particularly the health of bees!! If you know anything about bees, you know they are keystone to life! They are responsible for the development of everything from honey to almonds to fruit and vegetables and create sacred medicines which benefit the health of the ecosystem. With tremendous power and will bees push back the top layer of mulch to expose the enzymes/acids of King Stropharia mycelium. A steady stream of bees suckle on the enzymes/acids, bring health to the whole hive. P-coumaric acid has been identified as a key acid in detoxification of pollutants in bees, preventing diseases spread through bee colonies. Deep gratitude to these noble kings for providing medicine for medicine.
King Stropharia actually depends on bacteria for growth. Studies show that King Stropharia has been proven to filter out and consume coliform bacteria such as E-coli, as well as pathogenic nematodes in soil. This fungus produces unique spiny cells called acanthocytes which are able to immobilise and digest root feeding nematodes! They are plant guardian angles.
And of course as these noble kings, they remove harmful heavy metals from the soil to protect their garden kingdom. Heavy metals throw out optimal pH balance of soils and disturb absorption of key vitamins and minerals needed for growth of nutrient food.
* Please note that if your soils extra heavy in heavy metals, fungi are known to bioaccumulate these heavy metals in they’re fruiting body (mushroom), removing them from the soils. These mushrooms should not be eaten. However you can hold great reverence to the fact that this fungi and through your facilitation are improving the health of the ecosystem around you and in turn boosting your health and immune system. We are all connected.
Now you know a little more about the noble, courageous King, Godzilla mushroom that creeps through wood and soil in search of bacteria, root feeding nematodes, unlocking nutrients and making them bioavailable to plants in it’s wake, removing heavy metals clogging up the system, offering its sweet succulent medicine to plant allies AND producing food!
This King ticks all the boxes as the ultimate garden companion.
If you have purchased one of our 10L King Strophora buckets and are ready to lay a mushroom bed, firstly you will need to select a location and have woody debris on hand.
Selecting a location.
This fungi is a great companion for perennial, tree and annual systems. When choosing a location think ‘rich with life'! Garden systems have soils teaming with life. Remember King Stropharia work in concert with microorganisms.
A mushroom bed can also be incorporated at sites of runoff from compost toilets, animal and grey water systems. Even in and around streams, rivers and tributaries to act as biological and sediment filters.
This fungi is less fussy than others and doesn’t mind growing in sunny locations, however is typically found growing in dabbled light. If you’ve got locations up for debate, ideally choose a location that is walked past regularly so as not to miss the fruits when they come. In years time, King Stropharia, being King has an agenda of his own and will pop up wherever tickles his fancy. So keep a keen eye.
Mulch
King Stropharia digest woody debris as a food source. Hardwood woodchips is their preferred however most other woody debris also does quite well. It may be a matter of whats available, don’t stress, fungi are adaptable diverse creatures.
Don’t use pine bark, we have observed minimal to no growth on this substrate probably due to antifungal properties. We have had some success with camphor woodchip.
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Making the King’s Bed
So now that you have selected the area you would like to apply the mycelium, weed as needed and have your materials ready. If the site is on a slop some for of retaining wall may be required which can be made from logs or rock. Say you chose to use logs as a boarder or retaining wall you might consider incorporating another species of fungi into the log for additional fungal diversity. ;)
After the site is prepared add a generous layer of woodchip approximately 5-15cm thick. Open your bucket and admire the sweet umami aromas of fungal mycelium and crumble the 10L King Stropharia bucket on top of the woodchips. Enjoy the hydrating silkiness feel!
One 10L bucket will comfortably cover a 2-3m2 area. After the buckets have been emptied a final layer of woodchip can be spread over the top at a thickness of around 5cm or more. If the woodchip added to the bed is dry, give it a generous watering and wish the fungi an adventurous exploration of their new home. Watering every so often is needed to keep these guys happy.
There you have it, you have successfully made a King Stropharia mushroom bed !
Harvesting
King Stropharia takes roughly 6 to 12 month to settle into their new home fruiting in the shoulder seasons of Spring and Autumn when the temperatures are at its most pleasant. The best time to harvest is when the mushroom cap is curled to nearly flattened. To conceptualise this better, when the cap of the mushroom is flat, it is at max spore dispersal, has reached peak maturity, with old age fast approaching.
Many other critters love to feast upon these beauties. Get them before they reach peak maturity. Also keep in mind they double each day… so be quick.
Pull out the whole mushroom, stem included. You’ll notice many white strands coming off the stem, this is mycelium. Cut off the stem and you have the potential to proliferate the abundance of this mushroom with stem but culture (another blog soon to be released - stay bemushroomed). Cook them up and savour!
Happy planting, mulching, observing and exploring the wonders of nature!
We send lots of love and prays to you on your mushroom journey. May the fruits be ever in abundance, mycelium vigorous and medicine strong.
Mush love,
Alchemystic Fungi
Xx
