I am not much of a botanist - actually I'm not sure that is even the correct field. But mushrooms, toadstools and fungi have always fascinated me. The following is a collections of photos over the course of the summer that I have snapped on my woodland walks. Unfortunately I do not know even common names of most, let alone proper taxonomy. I'll be forever in your debt for any identification assistance, especially the first and last.
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| Isn't this magnificent? It is about a foot tall and right along a main highway. |
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| Our version of petrified wood, but it is just a rotting stump |
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| Another whopper - giant puffball - quite edible. |
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| No this is not the underbelly of a crocodile, just a fallen tree. |
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| Save the best for last, right? This about the size of a softball and wonderfully furry - I half expected to see it move! |
And that is about all I have to say for today.
Musings and meanderings from the Musical Gardener.
It always amazes this Ozark Farm Chick how very beautiful nasty old fungus can be. Just goes to show ya'll that beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder.
ReplyDeleteQuite the eye man!!!
From the frosty hills and hollers of the Missouri Ponderosa, ya'll have a blessed and beautiful fall day!!! :o)
Beautiful! I love the lacy layers of the first one. Probably inspired ladies fashions at some point.
ReplyDeleteWow, you have some beauties there!
ReplyDeleteThere are so many varieties out there. You've captured quite a few. With all our rain we have them sprouting all over the place.
ReplyDeleteThat's quite a collection. I have no knowledge whatsoever and am always alarmed by French and Italian friends who collect wild fungi to eat.
ReplyDeleteLove the title of your blog!
Love these. The only one I'm familiar with is the puffball...and I've eaten many of them. The others are lovely to look at! But I wouldn't eat 'em. Thanks for sharing these pix. Great!
ReplyDeleteThe first one may be Northern Tooth, Climacodon septentrionalis(Steccherinum septentrionale; Overlapping yellowish-white annual shelves with toothed undersides found on living hardwoods, especially maples. Season of fruiting: Late summer-fall. Ecosystem function: Spongy heart rot. Edibility: Inedible. Fungal note: This fungus fruits only occasionally on individual trees, and its teeth can reach 10-15 mm in length. The ones I found were purest white, so don't know. The last one may be Bears Head Tooth, Hericium coralloides. From a single stem, the fruit body branches into clusters of snow-white spines that point down and bear the spores of the fungus on their outer surface. Spines darken to yellow or brown with age. Season of fruiting: Late summer-fall. Ecosystem function: Decay of hardwood logs. Edibility: Choice Fungal note: This fungus can be pickled, marinated, or fried.
ReplyDeleteThe last one could also be Lions Mane Fungus, highly sought after by herbalists. Check pics on line.
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