Little known locals

what is it

oh, it has a tail.

Didn’t know it at first but this is a stinkhorn egg probably Phallus impudicus, rarely if eaten at all in N.A.

This one is not uncommon though it is usually just one mid size mushroom which doesn’t draw much attention until you try to pick one. The stem will either snap when breaks like a green bean or you will pull up 1/2 ft of underground stem root. Only the caps of Hymenopellis furfuracea are edible.

Lastly is a colorful mushroom which I often don’t find most years though this year there are many in Maritime mixed and conifer forest, (Boletus speciosus var brunneus), it has quite a name doesn’t it. This mushroom is considered edible though a fraction of the population will experience stomach trouble so you may choose to leave this one off your edible list. Hope you enjoyed seeing some of the locals we rarely get a chance to meet. ciao

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Now gathering in N.B.

Lots of folks are getting outside and picking wild low bush blueberries right now, it is the most popular gathered wild food in much of New Brunswick.

When it comes to wild mushrooms Chanterelle is the most popular gathered and it is available in good numbers at the same time though its season runs many weeks longer than our blueberries, rain permitting.

Craterelles ignicolor are just starting to appear and are much to tiny at this point, it should be at least a week before we see any at a good size for harvesting.

By the look of the cap this must be a bolete.

Yes, pores surface turned to the sun we see its a Boletus subglabripes in a mixed conifer and poplar woods. Well I must be off, its harvest time.

Oyster Ms and baby Chantys

I was a bit surprised to see these spring Oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus populinus) in such good shape as usually this mushroom is eaten up very quickly by a type of small beetle when growing in spring and early summer on our poplar trees here in eastern Canada. These ones had no trace of beetles, a few weeks ago the beetles were chewing the tiniest oyster mushroom it seems even before they appeared, possible the warm days leading into the recent rains has encouraged a vacation somewhere else.

This particular variety of oyster mushroom has a very nice aroma which fades away in a few hours after gathering.

It has rained a good amount lately and these small brightly colored baby Chanterelle mushrooms are popping up in great numbers in mixed and conifer woods.

 

These small mushrooms tend to remain in a firm edible state on the ground for a much longer period of time than most of the choice edible mushrooms I gather so I feel no urgency to gather these at this point. If no further rain was to appear for a week to 10 days these little ones would dry out and not recover to expand out, though a new bunch may grow in the same area with future summer and fall rains especially if they continue for  a few days. Small Chanterelle are often consider the best to eat though these ones to me need at least one more rain.

These oldies are new to me

I haven’t posted in quite awhile so here are a few photos to show what has caught my attention recently. This year I am learning a bit about the ancient edible grasses and sedges which were commonly eaten before time was even created by man (he he), along also with other wild foods all new to me, so I can’t recommend anything I show here today as I am still in the process of growing comfortable with these foods. I am also having some fun with fermenting, especially with sour tonic beverages and should do some post on these in coming months.

Here in my hand is a very common small bulrush in my area known as Scirpus microcarpus which will be easy gathering if its taste is to my liking, I’m interested in the interior stem bases cooked and seeds and possibly the sprouted seeds and flowers.

Scirpus microcarpus flowers in June.

Notice the red sections on the stems which makes this small bulrush S. microcarpus easy to identify from the many others in wet areas, this one will venture up on to drier areas like the edges of roads which is not a good gathering location, but it may make it a good plant to grow in marginal soils or in a soggy garden?

Another fresh water marsh plant which is considered invasive in some parts on NA , Phragmites australis aka the Common Reed which is the largest grass in my area towering many feet above my head, here we see some young green shoots. This is a very useful plant with a 5 (which is the highest) edible rating at the PFAF website, check it out.

The section at the top of the stem where the slight gold coloring is showing is what I’m after here, this is the male flowering section of the Cattail which is a good source of vitamin C and possibly antioxidants so I will tinker with drying some to use later on. It is a little tricky to harvest these and also select the right time as I’m a little late to start collecting for most of the Catttails in my area, I’ll be better prepared next year. Here is a link to a great video on harvesting this plant by Arthur Haines  —   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t0XBlPROtz8

 chow for now