simonb

It was spring when the thieving beavers came by. They tasted a couple of the maple and oak, but there are 15 completely bare poplar logs floating around in the lake; quite obviously their favorite. They even pulled all the poplar chunks out of my firewood pile and now there are completely bare pieces of firewood floating around the lake. Why cut a tree down with your teeth when someone can do it for you with a chainsaw?

I've only found one of these in the last few years, then this year 5 of them show up right behind my shed; tasty!

I've never seen anything like this; tough polypore like mushroom but with traditional cap & stem shape. Was growing out of a stump. It is very thin; probably only around 1/4" thick cap, but 3 to 4" diameter.

Now this same tree is sending out masses of honey mushrooms, plus many more pholiota.

A couple of beautiful mushrooms unfortunately growing out of my large sugar maple with the treehouse in it. Hopefully it isn't parasitic.

I see that one of my trees is sending clumps of the pholiotas each fall. Is there any way to safely identify the different species without microscopy? If they taste half as good as the pholiota adiposa that I grow on blocks they would be a treat.

Found this one growing in thick pine cedar forest. First time I've ever seen one with such a thick stem; is around 1.5 inches diameter. Does seem a bit brittle like most russula species.

Found a couple polypores growing on birch that actually have a fleshy texture. I've never seen anything on birch that wasn't hard as a rock. Any suggestions?

Lots of good identifying features; yet I haven't been able to place with certainty. Found these on the edge of the pine forest (mostly red and white pines). The cap is a dark red brown, is not slimy but it hasn't rained for a few days. It is not velvety, has a slight tack to the touch. The pores are a dull yellowish color with no staining. The stem is dark on the bottom, and the upper portion above the ring is lighter with many dots. The flesh is very mild tasting and no staining. My first thought is Suillus glandulosus (“Boreal Bolete”) but most pics I see of it show much coarser pore surface.

Yes the same spots will produce again next year. Enjoy; my favorite mushroom so far. Cubed and fried with potatoes makes an incredibly tasty breakfast treat with gorgeous bright orange color.

I imagine this is a new issue for growing mushrooms on logs. I made up a mix of log and spawn types; total of 50 logs. We piled them in a dark part of the woods where it always stays moist near the lake. I had 4 perfect stacks and after 1 week in the woods I came back to find 12 logs missing, and another 3 or 4 half chewed apart. I don't get along with beavers at the best of times; but this one really boiled my blood. I'm surprised they wood eat them when covered in so much paraffin wax.

Has anyone seen something like this before. At first glance it looks like a pale COW, but if you look closely in behind looks like small Lions Manes growing. This is in a mature Sugar Maple in Ontario near Ottawa.

About 5 years ago 1 half of a large oak tree broke off beside my main trail through the woods. Since then I've been checking the tree for mushrooms almost every day when I walk by. Well after years expecting some hen of the woods or chicken of the woods it finally happened and its a beautiful young and clean specimen. Hopefully this becomes a recurring theme for the life of this tree. Now I just need to find a Hen of the woods.

I found the taste and texture not bad. They were not too grainy, very mild mushroom flavor not unlike generic grocery store mushrooms. A bit of the color remains after cooking which could make for some fun meals. I might try pickling one to see if the color holds fast; would be a very cool looking jar. I see these most years on my property; so hopefully in a wet summer like we are having enough will pop up to make it worthwhile.

Very thick ridges, also with a lot of cross veining between them. The interior is solid white, definitely splits easily. Pleasant smell, but I can't say I've ever detected the fruity smell described for some chanterelles.