Far West Fungi Mushroom Farm Field Trip

The yellow tapes are there to reduce mushroom flies

We gathered at Rockridge BART station this morning for carpooling. Master Ken was glad to see me with my car since they were short on cars. I picked up Christina and Silent Joe then headed toward Far West Fungi Farm in Moss Landing. The weather forecast said that there would be a shower in the afternoon; however, the rain started shortly after we got on the freeway. By the time I got to Highway 17, the rain was pouring down so hard as if someone was hosing down the car with full blast of water. I glanced back occasionally at Silent Joe who sat in the back. I hoped they weren't too worried. After all, I have driven Highway 17 countless times. We arrived at the Farm just minutes past noon, and we were the first group from Rockridge BART to arrive. We joined the first tour led John and Toby Garrone's (owners) younger son, Kyle.

Golden Oyster

Unlike a regular vegetable farm, the mushrooms are grown inside of dark and humid warehouses on blocks inside of special plastic bags. These plastic bags cost 20 cents each, which allow oxygen to enter but not bacteria. Kyle Garrone explained to us how the sawdust is mixed, sterilized, and compressed. They are inoculated with mushroom spawns in "clean room", which the employees have to take a shower before entering and stay inside all day during the process in order to eliminate contamination. The clean room is the only facility that's not open for tour.

The bagged blocks are then stored in the dark windowless warehouses. We got to walk through the warehouses of various mushrooms in various stages. Far West currently grow 9 kinds mushrooms - white, blue, brown, pink, gold, and trumpet oysters, shiitake, lion’s mane, maitake, and reishi along with acreage of traditional crop plants that their employees grow for their own use. They grow everything certified organic on recycled materials.

Lion's Mane

At the end of the tour, we had our usual potluck BBQ. Now, you might wonder, how could we have a BBQ in this bad weather? First, a raining day is a great day for mushroom people. Mushroom people never cancel an event due to the rain. When it rains, we cheer in excitement. This was the second time I encountered wet weather on a Far West Fungi field trip during the last 5 years as a MSSF member. I always have rain gear in my car - two umbrellas and a rain poncho. During mushroom season, the rain boots stay in the car, too.

Shiitake mushrooms waiting to be sorted in the walk in refrigerator

Mushroom people and urban farmers are extremely versatile and creative. The Garrone brothers had setup the big grill on wheels at the entrance of a farm shed. If the rain got too hard, we would pull the grill inside a bit. We didn't have enough disposable plates and utensils this year, but that was no big deal. Many people did bring their own bowls as we always encourage people to reduce waste by not using disposable products. People used the lids of tupperwares, flatten cardboard boxes, plastic inserts of crackers, cups, etc. as their plates/bowls. It was interesting to see what people were using to carry their food. I always bring my own food tray and utensils in the car. Everybody enjoyed the feast and social gathering.

Christina working the grill - chicken satay, marinated shiitake, zucchini, and sausage

In addition to the BBQ, we also raided the recycle pile of used mushroom blocks. The blocks are still full of mycilia and can be fruited again although it is not cost effective for the farm to reuse them. We took as many of the used blocks home as our cars could fit to grow mushrooms in our garages, closets, or under the trees.

We raided the pile of used mushroom blocks before heading over to the BBQ

Berkeley Marina, Great Spot for a Day Trip

Berkeley Marina is located in Berkeley, California, off Interstate 80 at University Avenue exit. It's a great place to take a walk, bike, get something to eat, fly a kite, sail a boat, swim in the bay, walk the dog, have a picnic, hang out, or take a nap on a blanket. It's one of the popular hangouts for day activities.
When you get off the freeway at University exit, you have the choices of heading down University Avenue to UC Berkeley or the opposite direction to the Marina. Sea Breeze Market and Deli is located at the entrance of the Marina. It has ample parking right next to it. Sea Breeze has been there for as long as I can remember. It sells fresh fruits, fruit smoothies, and various seafood sandwiches. As you walk or drive further down University Ave toward the Marina, there are a couple more fancier waterfront restaurants such the Hs Lordships and Skates.

There are always people in the Marina walking or biking along the bay trail. There is an off-leash dog area in César Chávez Park. On any clear day, people are there to fly kites. The annual Berkeley Kite festival takes place in César Chávez Park.
OCSC Sailing School is located in the Maria, where you can learn to sail and get certified. Berkeley Charter Boats can take you out on a fishing trip. Doubletree Hotel is in the Marina for visitors who want to stay right next to the bay.

The July 4th fireworks celebration is held at Marina annually; however, the city is considering to change the location due to the impact of loud noises on both domestic animals and wildlife.
Berkeley Marina is a great place to spend a day doing anything outdoorsy. People are friendly, and there is something to do there for everyone including the dogs.

An Unexpected Visitor

It's the second day of another heatwave. I put Dusty in his cage before I left for the cubicle job this morning. As soon as I got back, I started to water the plants. Suddenly I noticed two golden eyes staring at me.

"Oh, hey Kitty," I greeted the tuxedo cat resting in the shade. He got up and started walking toward me. Occasionally a cat wanders through the farm, but they never stayed long. I have never seen this cat before. I petted the cat and noticed how skinny he is. My policy is that everybody gets fed when they come to the farm. I don't have any cat food, not even a can of tuna; however, I do have some whole milk in the fridge. I knew he would like something cold to drink on this hot day. I went back inside to get the milk and Dusty's water bowl.

The cat sure wasn't shy about getting a free drink. As he drank the milk, I went to pick more figs. A lot of figs ripened from the heat today. I picked another full basket. Occasionally I turned around to look at the cat. He just stood there starting at my direction. I wondered if he was going to stay. After I picked all the figs, I proceeded to water more plants. The cat wasn't standing there anymore. Maybe he left. Oh, wait, he went back to the same spot where he was resting before.

After I watered all the herbs and vegetables, I checked on the cat again. He had curled up to take a nap. I left the rest of milk out for him and got another dog bowl out for Dusty's water.

"Goodnight, Kitty."

Making Dried Figs

I have been picking a few figs before and after work. Every day I see broken fig bits on the ground and partially eaten figs on the tree. I see the squirrels running back and forth the fence and jumping into the tree every day. Today is Indigenous People's Day in Berkeley Area while the rest of the country is Columbus Day. I didn't need to go to the cubicle job, so I grabbed the basket and finally got a chance to pick all the ripe and mostly ripe figs.

If you are familiar with figs, you know they don't stay fresh too long. I like to preserve some for later. I rinsed the figs first just because they have been sitting out there in the dust and who knows how many squirrels have climbed over them. After the were rinsed, I cut each in half and placed them on a cooling rack. Just my luck that we are having another heatwave here in the Bay Area. My sun room was over 90 degrees, so I left the sheet of fig halves in there until the sun started to set.

In the evening I transferred the figs into the dehydrator and set it at 140 degrees for drying vegetables and fruits. Within an hour, the aroma of figs filled the kitchen. I wish I could bottle this awesome aroma. Some of the figs are much bigger than the other. The bigger ones will take longer to dry. It will most likely take a couple nights for all of them to dry. They will reduce in size greatly when they are done. I will then bag them in zip lock bags just like I did with the dried apple slices. If you don't have a dehydrator or sun room, you can dry figs in your oven. Set the oven to the lowest setting possible and keep the door ajar with a metal spoon or something heat tolerant. I did this last year before getting a dehydrator. If you are looking for a dehydrator, check craigslist.com first. Sometimes people give them away under "free" section. You can also get them under "appliances" or "household" of "For Sale" section. I got mine off craigslist for a fraction of retail price.

Compost Giveaway Day in El Cerrito

Prior to my New York trip, I received a card in the mail about compost giveaway on October 10, 9 am - 5 pm, at El Cerrito Recycling Center, 7501 Schmidt Lane. I immediately marked the date on my schedule. Today is the day, and before 9 am I have loaded my Cruiser with 3 five-gallon buckets. Shortly after 9 am, I was on my way to the recycling center. This would be my first time going to the recycling center. I thought I knew where it was, but I ended up at the Electronics Waste Recycling event at the DMV parking lot. I got out of there and drove up Schmidt Lane. It turned out that the recycling center is located further up the hill.

I was happy to see that people have already lined up for free compost. After a short wait, I entered the compost area with a few other people. I was so happy to see the quality of the compost, which I nicknamed "black gold." The smell of the compost pile was earthy and organic. Love it! El Cerrito has just started collecting food scraps in July this year.

Personally I do not have a whole lot of food scraps to put in the recycling bin since most of them go into my own worm compost bins. I have to feed those pet worms! While I was getting my free compost, I also received some information on upcoming community workshops on Climate Action in El Cerrito. They will be held at the city hall on October 26, 5-7 pm, and December 2, 7-9 pm.