Wild Mushrooms

[DeltaEchoVictor]

Anybody hunt for 'em?  My squirrel hunting trips are generally a combination of looking at the tree tops & watching the ground for mushrooms.  I know there are a lot of opinions when it comes to edible fungi.  Let's hear yours, what's the best, what's the best way to make sure you're getting something safe?  Do you always spore test or do you rely on others to tell you what you have?  Who got you started?

If you have pictures of edible fungi in your area, post them & give us some general information including the best way to serve them, any mild reactions you've encountered, etc.

The edible varieties that I've found in my area are:
Morels
Coral Fungi
Boletes
Puffballs

These are the varieties that I frequently find that are readily identifiable.  I run across lots of others that I can't identify so easily, I usually leave the other varieties alone if I can't tell right away what they are.

I use The National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mushrooms for identification purposes.  If I can't absolutely identify what I have & whether or not it's safe to eat, I do not eat them.

***DISCLAIMER***
Mushroom varieties are sometimes difficult to differentiate.  Because of this, make sure every effort is made to identify the fungi you pick, if you choose not to, bad things including death can occur.  The above list includes varieties I am able to eat, reactions can vary by person & my list shouldn't be construed to mean anyone can eat them or their closely related varieties.  Above all, be safe & err on the side of caution and if you can't identify a particular fungi & DO NOT EAT THEM.

[spartan]

I loved to hunt mushrooms as a Boy Scout.  One of our leaders, "Mushroom" Bill was a local expert on more than 300 edible foods, particularly fungi.  He would take us out to pick things and then we would come back and cook what we found.  It's been so many years though I don't feel comfortable doing it on my own at the moment.

Thank you for mentioning The National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mushrooms.  I will need to pick it up and take a look around to see what I can find.

[ModernSurvival]

My favorite shroom is the rams head also know as the hen in the woods.  Here is a pic of one,



Other names for this are Maitake and Grifola frondosa

This shroom, fruits anytime from early September to late October and seems to be triggered by the first cold nights of the end of Summer. It is found mostly with dead or dying Oak trees.  They taste awesome and can be found in the same place year after year and often one shroom will go 20-30 lbs or more!

[dreadstalker]

I go morel hunting every year.
Great time of the year to be out and about.

I run across lots of others that I can't identify so easily, I usually leave the other varieties alone if I can't tell right away what they are.

I use The National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mushrooms for identification purposes.  If I can't absolutely identify what I have & whether or not it's safe to eat, I do not eat them.

It's right of you to do it that way too.

there is so many mushrooms out there that have close look alikes that can kill you the only way to be safe is to know EXACTLY wht you are picking. Many times there is no second chance.

[DeltaEchoVictor]

My favorite shroom is the rams head also know as the hen in the woods.  Here is a pic of one,



Other names for this are Maitake and Grifola frondosa

This shroom, fruits anytime from early September to late October and seems to be triggered by the first cold nights of the end of Summer. It is found mostly with dead or dying Oak trees.  They taste awesome and can be found in the same place year after year and often one shroom will go 20-30 lbs or more!

Nice!  I've yet to find one of those, & I've been looking too.  I hear they are great eatin'.  I believe we call them Hen o' the woods around here. 

I go morel hunting every year.
Great time of the year to be out and about.

I run across lots of others that I can't identify so easily, I usually leave the other varieties alone if I can't tell right away what they are.

I use The National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mushrooms for identification purposes.  If I can't absolutely identify what I have & whether or not it's safe to eat, I do not eat them.

It's right of you to do it that way too.

there is so many mushrooms out there that have close look alikes that can kill you the only way to be safe is to know EXACTLY wht you are picking. Many times there is no second chance.

I know what you mean. 

As an aside, I went squirrel hunting last weekend (killed three) but spent most of the time being distracted by all the mushrooms I kept running across.  I ran across a conservation dept. corn field off a public access area that had a ton of puffballs growing in the grassy areas around the corn field.  They were in the perfect stage for picking & eating but I didn't pull any.  My hunting buddy was getting frustrated by my meandering around looking for mushrooms on the ground, instead of watching the treeline for squirrels.  I love days like that.

[ModernSurvival]

Also if you have some stumps on your own land you can always "seed" them with spore infused dowels.  Easy way to create a few years of harvest (sometimes more) and not worry about perhaps eating the wrong shroom.

http://www.raintreenursery.com/catalog/producttype.cfm?producttype=MUSH

[DeltaEchoVictor]

Cool link Jack, thanks!

[Hraz]

This is a great fungus link http://www.fungi.com/

[edibleyards]

That's what I would like to do, grow them myself. I have always wanted to learn about edible mushrooms, but nervous without a mycologist present, although I do feel comfortable finding info and identifying, I know mushrooms can be challenging.

Puffballs: Are these the ones that burst open as they get older and make a cloud when you step on them? I used to love those when I was a kid, still do (for the fun aspect, haven't eaten yet though). We have lots of these around. The only reason I haven't tried it is because I'm not positive about my ID. I might pull some and bring them into the county extension and ask for their help.

[DeltaEchoVictor]

Puffballs: Are these the ones that burst open as they get older and make a cloud when you step on them? I used to love those when I was a kid, still do (for the fun aspect, haven't eaten yet though). We have lots of these around. The only reason I haven't tried it is because I'm not positive about my ID. I might pull some and bring them into the county extension and ask for their help.

Yep, those are the ones.  Before they spore they're a solid & very firm fleshed mushroom.  They look almost like a golfball sitting on the ground, although the size can be either larger or smaller.  They're great for sauteing.

[Supertramp]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Quote from: edibleyards on November 15, 2008, 09:22:42 PM
Puffballs: Are these the ones that burst open as they get older and make a cloud when you step on them? I used to love those when I was a kid, still do (for the fun aspect, haven't eaten yet though). We have lots of these around. The only reason I haven't tried it is because I'm not positive about my ID. I might pull some and bring them into the county extension 

up here they are unmistakable-they are all football sized-make sure they are firmfleshed and snow white though- i ate one that was alittle past it's time (cream colour) and am alittle soured on them right now-yech

[T Kehl]

I've read about a guy putting mushroom spores in chainsaw oil.  When clearing brush, he would cut "ribbons" lengthwise on the downed trees with the saw and harvest mushrooms about a year later, give or take, from the spores left from the oil residue.

Does anyone know more about this?

[DeltaEchoVictor]

I've read about a guy putting mushroom spores in chainsaw oil.  When clearing brush, he would cut "ribbons" lengthwise on the downed trees with the saw and harvest mushrooms about a year later, give or take, from the spores left from the oil residue.

Does anyone know more about this?

Never heard of it, but it's ingenious if it works. 

[sludgy_nixer]

i just set up a photobucket account so forgive my lateness

here's a few i found last april at my dads place in western missouri. 2 weeks after i found these my dad called
and said had filled up 3 5gal buckets and there were still tons out there. said it's the most abundant morel season he's
seen in his 40 years of hunting.





not to be confused with the beefsteak, which can really mess you up. some people eat them...but others have not been so lucky.

[DeltaEchoVictor]

Wow, those are nice morels.

I know that one as the false morel or the saddleback morel.(IIRC)

[Ultio1]

Great topic.
I dont hunt mushrooms because I am not that educated in Identifying them and because I live in the desert.
I do have a great interest in them however. It all started with ants believe it or not but thats another story. I have been learning to grow my own mushrooms for about 2 years now. I highly recommend it to anyone wanting to add a nearly endless food supply. I have grown 5 kinds of mushrooms and all were realitivly easy. It is a journey however and when you start looking online for info the top results a lot of times will be about "magic mushrooms" but the principal is the same so you can learn from those type of forums and videos to. There are quite a few youtube videos that show teach you how to grow mushrooms many different ways. You will need a place to do it, a room or shed or something. I have tried just about every shortcut I could imagine and the results were always failure. However as soon as I just gave in and listened the experts I was successful every time. You can grow HUNDREDS of pounds of mushrooms a month in an area the size of a decent raised bed garden. These things can grow on cardboard, paper, grain and even straight out of logs. You can grow them on trash. It is a bit of a challenge at first but If you have had one week of chemistry or biology in high school you can do this. I will probably do a DIY or series of DIYs when I get settled in at my new place and get a shed setup to grow them in. You have to control temperature and humidity.  Its a make it or break it kind of thing and how much success you  have will be related to how well you do it. ( Unless you live in Oregon or Washington state, somewhere already perfectly suited for it)

Please watch this video if you have the time. Its not to long and it contains some amazing info on mushrooms.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XI5frPV58tY

[DeltaEchoVictor]

Great topic.
I dont hunt mushrooms because I am not that educated in Identifying them and because I live in the desert.
I do have a great interest in them however. It all started with ants believe it or not but thats another story. I have been learning to grow my own mushrooms for about 2 years now. I highly recommend it to anyone wanting to add a nearly endless food supply. I have grown 5 kinds of mushrooms and all were realitivly easy. It is a journey however and when you start looking online for info the top results a lot of times will be about "magic mushrooms" but the principal is the same so you can learn from those type of forums and videos to. There are quite a few youtube videos that show teach you how to grow mushrooms many different ways. You will need a place to do it, a room or shed or something. I have tried just about every shortcut I could imagine and the results were always failure. However as soon as I just gave in and listened the experts I was successful every time. You can grow HUNDREDS of pounds of mushrooms a month in an area the size of a decent raised bed garden. These things can grow on cardboard, paper, grain and even straight out of logs. You can grow them on trash. It is a bit of a challenge at first but If you have had one week of chemistry or biology in high school you can do this. I will probably do a DIY or series of DIYs when I get settled in at my new place and get a shed setup to grow them in. You have to control temperature and humidity.  Its a make it or break it kind of thing and how much success you  have will be related to how well you do it. ( Unless you live in Oregon or Washington state, somewhere already perfectly suited for it)

Please watch this video if you have the time. Its not to long and it contains some amazing info on mushrooms.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XI5frPV58tY

Thanks for the link U.

When you get your set up running take us thru it.  I'll be looking forward to it. 

Have you considered doing this for extra cash?  I've read that restaurants will pay for specialty mushrooms, shitake, mitake, etc.

[T Kehl]

i just set up a photobucket account so forgive my lateness

here's a few i found last april at my dads place in western missouri. 2 weeks after i found these my dad called
and said had filled up 3 5gal buckets and there were still tons out there. said it's the most abundant morel season he's
seen in his 40 years of hunting.





not to be confused with the beefsteak, which can really mess you up. some people eat them...but others have not been so lucky.

Very nice morels!

FYI, I have found that morel's are freezable.  We clean them and put them on a sheet until frozen.  Once frozen they can be placed in bags, but they are fragile.

Maybe it's just the joy of fried morel's in mid-winter, but they taste nearly or just as good as fresh.

[Ultio1]

Great topic.
I dont hunt mushrooms because I am not that educated in Identifying them and because I live in the desert.
I do have a great interest in them however. It all started with ants believe it or not but thats another story. I have been learning to grow my own mushrooms for about 2 years now. I highly recommend it to anyone wanting to add a nearly endless food supply. I have grown 5 kinds of mushrooms and all were realitivly easy. It is a journey however and when you start looking online for info the top results a lot of times will be about "magic mushrooms" but the principal is the same so you can learn from those type of forums and videos to. There are quite a few youtube videos that show teach you how to grow mushrooms many different ways. You will need a place to do it, a room or shed or something. I have tried just about every shortcut I could imagine and the results were always failure. However as soon as I just gave in and listened the experts I was successful every time. You can grow HUNDREDS of pounds of mushrooms a month in an area the size of a decent raised bed garden. These things can grow on cardboard, paper, grain and even straight out of logs. You can grow them on trash. It is a bit of a challenge at first but If you have had one week of chemistry or biology in high school you can do this. I will probably do a DIY or series of DIYs when I get settled in at my new place and get a shed setup to grow them in. You have to control temperature and humidity.  Its a make it or break it kind of thing and how much success you  have will be related to how well you do it. ( Unless you live in Oregon or Washington state, somewhere already perfectly suited for it)

Please watch this video if you have the time. Its not to long and it contains some amazing info on mushrooms.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XI5frPV58tY

Thanks for the link U.

When you get your set up running take us thru it.  I'll be looking forward to it. 

Have you considered doing this for extra cash?  I've read that restaurants will pay for specialty mushrooms, shitake, mitake, etc.

That thought has crossed my mind. I am trying to setup a small shed with the necessary stuff. Climate control is a must here. It is my intention to grow enough if I can to trade at the farmers market. I have grown relatively small amounts for my family and friends. I have recently moved and so I havent started any yet. When I do Ill definitely be posting about it. I found this on my property today.

I think its a Montagnea but I am not sure.

[DeltaEchoVictor]

I don't what that one is either U.

I use The National Audubon Society's Field Guide to North American Mushrooms for identification.

It's a constant companion when I'm in the woods.  It's an excellent resource & you should consider picking it up if you have a penchant for wild fungi.  It's very thorough & tells you what's edible & what's not.  It has excellent pictures as well that are cross referenced with an information page that runs down all relevant info about the various fungi.  Not to mention it's the perfect size for dropping in a haversack or possibles bag so it doesn't take up much room.

Amazon has it HERE

[Ultio1]

I use this site for identifying mushrooms. You post a good pic and a description of the area it was found in and they tell you what it is.
http://mushroomobserver.org/
 The mushroom I found yesterday is likely a Battarrea phalloides. It doesnt say if its edible just that it is a crime to pick because its protected. They are usually pretty fast, not much conversation over there but I am pretty new so.