Have you noticed more mushrooms popping up on your lawn this year. Gardeners and lanscapers have reported masses of mushrooms this year; more than they have seen in a decade.
This is a perfect example of nature’s infinite wisdom to regenerate herself! Lawn mushrooms are a regenerative solution for the earth; nature’s protocol to return carbon to the soil.
Mushrooms are the visible part of fungi mycelia that are beneath the soil. They form the network of communication between all of the plants and trees we see. Mycelia are very similar to signaling molecules in that they provide the communication protocols for the regenerative pathways. Like signaling molecules such as interleukins, mycelia are hidden within the soil matrix, but like cell towers they extend their communication signals throughout their vast network. In the case of our residential lawns, the signals yield the growth of fungi, mostly Coprinus comatus.
Coprinus comatus is a nematophagous fungus, which means it can kill and digest certain species of nematodes. So, while this fungus is returning carbon to the soil, regenerating the earth, it is also ridding your environment of parasites that attack precious plants, trees and edibles like peanuts and root vegetables such as beetroots. Coprinus comatus can also recycle by ingesting and digesting other nematodes that invade waterways targeting fish and crustaceans.
These lawn fungi have significant economic and ecological importance. They naturally fight parasitic infestation and can be used to protect industrial crops such as peanuts and pecans. By restoring carbon to the soil, they globally contribute to the control of the ‘greenhouse’ effect. In clinical ecology based research, the constituents we are finding within these fungi are showing important interactions with drugs and metabolites; a significant discovery from Coprinus comatus may lead to the treatment of alcoholism and other addictions, as well as products that naturally manage waste and pollution in soil and water.