Sunday, November 09, 2008

Magic in nature


Sometimes nature gives us gifts of things that we have immortalized in children's stories making that thing seem unreal. The Amanita muscaria is one of those beauties in nature. From stories of gnomes to this postcard of Santa, the magical red toadstool with white spots seems almost unreal when found in nature.


This is a common toadstool here in Holland. On Saturday, we had to go to a village near Cranberry Cottage to do some shopping and found a great number of them growing along the banks of a canal there. Some were fading away, their bright red now going into a brown color.


"I am rich today with autumn's gold,
All that my covetous hands can hold;
Frost-painted leaves and goldenrod,
A goldfinch on a milkweed pod,
Huge golden pumpkins in the field
With heaps of corn from a bounteous yield,
Golden apples heavy on the trees
Rivaling those of Hesperides,
Golden rays of balmy sunshine spread
Over all like butter on warm bread;
And the harvest moon will this night unfold
The streams running full of molten gold.
Oh, who could find a dearth of bliss
With autumn glory such as this!"

~ Gladys Harp


15 comments:

Tammy said...

Heidi - That is so cool! I truly didn't know the red spotted toadstools were real. When Nick was very young, one of his favorite books was The Gnomes. It had very few words, but gorgeous artwork, and of course, those red toadstools.

Judy said...

Wow Heidi, thanks for sharing. I didn't know there was such a thing as a red mushroom!!

Kim @ Home Is Where The Heart Is said...

Very neat, Heidi! I, too, didn't know those toadstools were real...thanks for sharing the pictures.

Carolien said...

Hello Heidi! Yes, they really are magic, isn't it? We had lots of them in the garden, but since they tore down our birch tree, most of them disappeared, such a pity. They thrive under birch trees, did you notice that? I guess I took the same pictures of them each year :) Well, never mind ...

Have a nice week & I hope Jos is liking his new job environment.
Hugs, Carolien

Ginny said...

What an amazing toadstool. I've never seen anything like that, unless you count my game of TiddleyWinks (sp?) from childhood. The container was a toadstool with a removable cap that looked exactly like your red one.

Anonymous said...

Hi Heidie,
Long time, no "see" ! I don't know what it is but i cannot seem to get back blogging at the moment !!
I really have to do something about it ...today i will start reading blogs again maybe that will do the trick haha.
How exciting to see your kitchen change, can't wait to see the result !!!!!!
I'll send you the spaghetti recipe this week, promise :)
I hope Jos is enjoying his new job, please say hello to him.
Hugs, Janneke.

Brigitta said...

I think I have to pay more attention Heidi, I can't remember having seen one of this "in the wild" thanks for sharing

Tracy said...

Hi, Heidi! Lovely post...and very, very magical! I believe in the magic of nature...something special at every turn...mysterious mushroom rings, fairies hiding among the roses, gnomes secretly living in the attic.. ;o) Those mushrooms you have are beautiful. We have them here in Norway too! Happy Day, my friend ((HUGS))

Anonymous said...

Hello Heidi

I did't know that the "rood met witte stippen" toadstools only grow in our country. Maybe in Belgium and Germany too? I still love the stories with the gnomes and who lives in the toadstools. Just wondering last week if the childeren of tomorrow still do believe the stories. I hope it so very much, times changes but I hope this fairytale lives forever.
Hugs, Elly

Dena said...

Hi Heidi,

What an enchanting find! I had no idea that those really existed and I think I would be looking for fairies had I come across such a treasure :) Thank for sharing it with us!

Hugs,
Dena

Susan in SC said...

I love toadstools! How cute! They are just magical.

Nancy said...

Ok now, what I want to know issss, did you get to see and talk to any gnomes. I know they were there.
Love you, Mom

the tattered nest said...

Hi Heidi, these toadstools look fake..I have never seen a real one! only in fairy tales! thank you so much for sharing this...

Annemarie said...

Dear Heidi, the comments to this post amazed me! I didn't know they only seem to grow in The Netherlands (and, apparently, Norway!). I love to go into the woods and being inspired by these Kabouter Spillebeen paddestoelen. Although I don't have to go far. My parents have them in their garden :o)

Anonymous said...

Heidi, the pictures of the red toadstools remind me of my years in Germany. I was always so delighted when I would see them. I believe they are called Fleige Pils in Germany. You probably know much better than I do, but it was so much fun to see your pictures of them.