Both are common lichens and indeed very decorative. The one to the left must be some kind of Beard Lichen (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usnea) while the one to the right must be some kind of Cup licen (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cladonia). About growing them I don't really know. Probably it is possible to collect specimens with the wood they grow on and keep that ind an atmosphere akin to where they were found. But that won't give you a lot of lichen as slow indeed is very slow - some mm/year. Simply gooling "growing lichen" gives some interesting hits though. /Hans Olav

Thank you Vincent! Youve been a big help. I gave false info on that first mushroom. The pic of it on my camera was much brigher than it loaded on the computer. That first mushroom DOES NOT have craters. It has RIDGES. The protruding ridges have black on the ends. I did some research on it and im really not sure if its a Morchella elata or a Verpa (false morel). You are right about the second being an 'Inky Cap'. I looked it up and I think its a Coprinus micaceus. The scaly stump grower- I believe it is a Turkey Tail, Trametes versicolor. It is SO awesome! Thanks again! CMK

In the planter around the sides and back of our little Koi pool I've planted several different types of ferns the neat thing is little ferns are now popping up everywhere on there own. I guess it's just the right environment for the spores to take hold and grow. One of my favorite ferns is our native maidenhair I keep dividing them and planting them whereever I find an appropriate spot. In the fall there's a type of mushroom/ fungus that grows out of the wood in the planter itself, kind of neat looking and we now have a type of moss growing on the stone in the little spillway. Old mother nature has taken over in this area of my garden and I couldn't be happier. Annette

Just like any other type of compost, there is good stuff and there is bad stuff. The recipe for mushroom compost varies from company to company, but can include composted wheat or rye straw, peat moss, used horse bedding straw, chicken manure, cottonseed or canola meal, grape crushings from wineries, soybean meal, potash, gypsum, urea, ammonium nitrate and lime. It is steam pasturized to kill off any surface pathogens or pests then seeded with the mushroom spores. Once the mushrooms are grown and harvested, the compost or growing media is discarded as "spent" or no longer useful for mushroom production. But the remains are still a useful source of OM for the gardener. Concerns about pH are valid - just as the quality can vary, so can the pH depending on the ingredients. How "composted" this material really is is at issue, as the ingredients are pretty much piled together fresh before the pasturization process and depending on the materials used and their concentrations in the mix, pH could be higher than expected - I'd test to make sure. The salts they are referring to are soluble salts. Soluble salts are minerals/nutrients dissolved in water. Synthetic fertilizer dissolved in water becomes a soluble salt and that is how plants take up nutrients, as soluble salts. When water evaporates from the soil, the minerals orsalts stay behind. As the salts in the soil become more and more concentrated, it becomes more difficult for plants to take up water. The soluble salts in mushroom compost are often quite concentrated and while these concentrations may be okay for more mature plants, they are often too concentrated for seedlings or seed starting. Also members of the Ericaceae or heath family salt sensitive and not happy with high levels of soluble salts. Chalk is lime and this is often added to MC, in part to offset a lower pH or the acidity of some of the ingredients. Some is fine, too much is not. Again, it depends on the ingredients and how they were processed. As with any acquired or purchased soil or compost product, I would want to see and examine the stuff before purchasing to determine exactly what you are getting - that the texture and smell is good, that there is no additional 'stuff' (debris) lurking in the mix and that mix looks uniform.