The "Hen" is one of our favorite edible mushrooms of the fall. It fits
our modus operandi regarding eating wild mushrooms. The only thing it
is likely to be mistaken for is a pile of dead leaves.

js

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wrote:
> The "Hen" is one of our favorite edible mushrooms of the fall. It fits
> our modus operandi regarding eating wild mushrooms. The only thing it
> is likely to be mistaken for is a pile of dead leaves.
>
> js
>
> --
> PHOTO OF THE WEEK: http://schmidling.com/pow.htm

Nice photo. I have a huge collection of photos of fungi I took when I
was in CA. I would love to identify all of them and start learning how
to ID edible mushrooms but I'm a bit afraid to eat any.

-L.

-L. wrote:

> Nice photo. I have a huge collection of photos of fungi I took when I
> was in CA. I would love to identify all of them and start learning how
> to ID edible mushrooms but I'm a bit afraid to eat any.

With only photos you will only be able to identify a few obvious ones
but its a place to start. Get a field guide to mushrooms with lots of
pictures and start comparing them. If you think you have a match,
Google the name and get more info.

You will find that the next time you find a mushroom, you will need lots
more details to help identify it.

There are lots of mushroom books out there but I think the best place to
start in the Audubon one.

js


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In article . com>,
" > wrote:

> http://schmidling.com/pow.htm

We called it "chicken of the woods." :-) Mom always thought it a real
find.
--
-Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ
http://web.mac.com/barbschaller
http://jamlady.eboard.com

> wrote in message
ups.com...
> The "Hen" is one of our favorite edible mushrooms of the fall. It fits
> our modus operandi regarding eating wild mushrooms. The only thing it
> is likely to be mistaken for is a pile of dead leaves.
>
> js
>
> --
> PHOTO OF THE WEEK: http://schmidling.com/pow.htm
> Astronomy, Beer, Cheese, Fiber,Gems, Sausage,Silver
> http://schmidling.com
>
I'm sure this will be my 'find' one day when I least expect it. So far,
despite thousands of days in the woods, it remains a holy grail for me.
The others (scaber stalk bolete, sulfer shelf, etc) have fallen one by one
but I can't seem to come across a hen of the woods.
Kurt
PS nice pic, and do you think overpopulated deer and coons are eating these
up before I can get to them?

Everyone needs to be aware that this one, although delicious, can cause
severe gastric upset in a small percentage of the population.
Steve
> wrote in message
ups.com...
> The "Hen" is one of our favorite edible mushrooms of the fall. It fits
> our modus operandi regarding eating wild mushrooms. The only thing it
> is likely to be mistaken for is a pile of dead leaves.
>
> js
>
> --
> PHOTO OF THE WEEK: http://schmidling.com/pow.htm
> Astronomy, Beer, Cheese, Fiber,Gems, Sausage,Silver
> http://schmidling.com
>

Jack Schmidling wrote:
>
> With only photos you will only be able to identify a few obvious ones
> but its a place to start. Get a field guide to mushrooms with lots of
> pictures and start comparing them. If you think you have a match,
> Google the name and get more info.
>
> You will find that the next time you find a mushroom, you will need lots
> more details to help identify it.
>
> There are lots of mushroom books out there but I think the best place to
> start in the Audubon one.

Thanks for the info. My undergrad degree is in environmental biology
so I am used to field identification of different species. I'm just a
tad afraid to eat anything without an expert around to confirm my IDs,
LOL...

-L.

Steve Peek wrote:

> > wrote:
>
>>The "Hen" is one of our favorite edible mushrooms of the fall. It fits
>>our modus operandi regarding eating wild mushrooms. The only thing it
>>is likely to be mistaken for is a pile of dead leaves.
>>
>
> Everyone needs to be aware that this one, although delicious, can cause
> severe gastric upset in a small percentage of the population.
>

I was unaware of this. I know Laetiporus sp. (Chicken of the Woods,
Sulfur Shelf) can cause gastric upset in some people, especially if
eaten raw. But, Grifola frondosa is available in some grocery stores.

I find it often in the fall, usually at the base of mature white oak.
Supposedly, it has much touted medicinal value.

wrote:

> Frederick Burroughs wrote:
>
>>
>>I find it often in the fall, usually at the base of mature white oak.
>>Supposedly, it has much touted medicinal value.
>
> Is it ever found under conifers? We have a real shortage of hardwood in my
> area.

In my experience, it tends to be choosy. Never found it under conifers,
but I live in a hardwood forest.

Kurt wrote:

> PS nice pic, and do you think overpopulated deer and coons are eating these
> up before I can get to them?

We have the same critter problems here but they do not seem to be
interested in fungus.

js


--
PHOTO OF THE WEEK: http://schmidling.com/pow.htm
Astronomy, Beer, Cheese, Fiber,Gems, Sausage,Silver http://schmidling.com

Steve Peek wrote:
> Everyone needs to be aware that this one, although delicious, can cause
> severe gastric upset in a small percentage of the population.

That's interesting because I have confirmed a very mild stomach cramping
several hours after eating lots of them.

I also quit eating Giant Puffballs because it was much worse than mild.
I got pretty miserable.

js

--
PHOTO OF THE WEEK: http://schmidling.com/pow.htm
Astronomy, Beer, Cheese, Fiber,Gems, Sausage,Silver http://schmidling.com

Jack Schmidling wrote:

> Steve Peek wrote:
>
>> Everyone needs to be aware that this one, although delicious, can
>> cause severe gastric upset in a small percentage of the population.
>
>
> That's interesting because I have confirmed a very mild stomach cramping
> several hours after eating lots of them.
>
> I also quit eating Giant Puffballs because it was much worse than mild.
> I got pretty miserable.
>
>
One of the general rules of mushroom consumption is to not overdo it.
Chitin, the main structural component of mushrooms (and the component of
insect exoskeletons), is indigestible by humans. A very large meal of
mushrooms might result in intestinal obstruction. Along with thorough
cooking, small portions are the rule.

-L. wrote:
>
> Thanks for the info. My undergrad degree is in environmental biology
> so I am used to field identification of different species. I'm just a
> tad afraid to eat anything without an expert around to confirm my IDs,
> LOL...
>
> -L.

Around here the local arboretum offers classes in edible wild plants,
including mushrooms. Surely there is something like that in CA.
When I have a new mushroom popping up in my property I pocket it and go
to B&N where, sipping coffee, I identify it from at least two field
guides. In the process I have figured which two field guides I want to
buy (they are all good, but some fit your thought process better). I
eat only the mushrooms that I planted on my property, either in compost
piles, wood chip piles, or buried logs. I also eat the coprinus comatus
that comes out in numbers in my lawn in the Fall. No mistaking that one
either, even though this year I had a nice bloom of angel destroyer (a
deadly one) right next to the coprinus.

Frederick Burroughs wrote:
> wrote:
>
> > Frederick Burroughs wrote:
> >
> >>
> >>I find it often in the fall, usually at the base of mature white oak.
> >>Supposedly, it has much touted medicinal value.
> >
> > Is it ever found under conifers? We have a real shortage of hardwood in my
> > area.
>
> In my experience, it tends to be choosy. Never found it under conifers,
> but I live in a hardwood forest.

There is a variety of grifola that grows on conifers. I think
www.fungi.com sells spawn.

wrote:
> The "Hen of the woods" .

How about Cock in the bush? hehe

Sheldon

-L. wrote:
> wrote:
> > The "Hen" is one of our favorite edible mushrooms of the fall. It fits
> > our modus operandi regarding eating wild mushrooms. The only thing it
> > is likely to be mistaken for is a pile of dead leaves.
> >
> > js
> >
> > --
> > PHOTO OF THE WEEK: http://schmidling.com/pow.htm
>
> Nice photo. I have a huge collection of photos of fungi I took when I
> was in CA. I would love to identify all of them and start learning how
> to ID edible mushrooms but I'm a bit afraid to eat any.
>
> -L.
If you have saved the photos on a CD, you may try comparing them with
the extensive listing of known fungi from California at the San
Francisco Mycological Society. It helps to have a cursory idea of what
general group of mushrooms you are trying to find, since most of the
photos are arranged in alphabetical order. But there are good-qualify
photos of at least 300 different species - enough to have you started,
anyway. Once you have found something that looks similar to what you
have found, you may be able to identify them easier. But you must get a
good mushroom field guide to help. Audubon Field Guide to North
American Mushrooms is good and fairly cheap, much better IMO is David
Aurora's big book, as well as his "All The Rain Promises", which is
cheaper than the big book but doesn't have as many important mushrooms
in it.

There is no single manual for identification of all known mushrooms in
any area that I am aware of. Because of that, it takes several years of
searching (preferably with people who have been looking more years than
you) to feel comfortable identifying a new mushroom on site.

Daniel B. Wheeler

I just Googled David Aurora Mushroom book, and immediately found the
reference: Mushrooms Demystified.

Daniel B. Wheeler
wrote:
> -L. wrote:
> > wrote:
> > > The "Hen" is one of our favorite edible mushrooms of the fall. It fits
> > > our modus operandi regarding eating wild mushrooms. The only thing it
> > > is likely to be mistaken for is a pile of dead leaves.
> > >
> > > js
> > >
> > > --
> > > PHOTO OF THE WEEK: http://schmidling.com/pow.htm
> >
> > Nice photo. I have a huge collection of photos of fungi I took when I
> > was in CA. I would love to identify all of them and start learning how
> > to ID edible mushrooms but I'm a bit afraid to eat any.
> >
> > -L.
> If you have saved the photos on a CD, you may try comparing them with
> the extensive listing of known fungi from California at the San
> Francisco Mycological Society. It helps to have a cursory idea of what
> general group of mushrooms you are trying to find, since most of the
> photos are arranged in alphabetical order. But there are good-qualify
> photos of at least 300 different species - enough to have you started,
> anyway. Once you have found something that looks similar to what you
> have found, you may be able to identify them easier. But you must get a
> good mushroom field guide to help. Audubon Field Guide to North
> American Mushrooms is good and fairly cheap, much better IMO is David
> Aurora's big book, as well as his "All The Rain Promises", which is
> cheaper than the big book but doesn't have as many important mushrooms
> in it.
>
> There is no single manual for identification of all known mushrooms in
> any area that I am aware of. Because of that, it takes several years of
> searching (preferably with people who have been looking more years than
> you) to feel comfortable identifying a new mushroom on site.
>
> Daniel B. Wheeler