what are these

[Henry Rancourt]

Hello all,

I just joined this group. These grow in the lawn in a group of three about 15 feet from an old oak tree. They are about 1 foot across and every time I dig them out they come back quickly. Does anyone know what they are and if they are edible?

Thanks,

Henry

[gkavulich]

I'm by no means an expert, but I found similar specimens recently and they turned out to be Black-staining Polypore
(Meripilus sumstinei) according to my research. But, I would defer to those more experienced than me for absolute ID. More info can be found at: http://www.wildmanstevebrill.com/Mushrooms.Folder/Black-stainingPolypore.html

[ladyflyfsh]

I would agree with gkavulich http://www.mushroomexpert.com/meripilus_sumstinei.html they are edible when young and fresh but only the softest parts.

[Evan]

Cut a piece off and see if it turns a dark color in a couple minutes. If so, then it's a black staining polypore.

[Henry Rancourt]

So glad I found this great site. I'm impressed with the fast and very interesting responses, to mine and other's questions. It certainly appears to have members with vast scientific knowledge of mushrooms.

I live in Connecticut and there are a fairly large variety of mushrooms that grow on my property. I think the variety is due to the property having five, large, distinctly different areas which are separated by large areas of lawn.

I'll be posting pics and asking questions as the seasons change and different mushrooms sprout. I have a top quality laboratory microscope with various eyepieces, lenses and camera attachment capability. The only time I've thought about mushrooms, until now, is when I grocery shop. That is going to change and I can tell it will be fun.

[ChefsWild]

I use all of a Meripilus, no waste! Dave can let us know how he likes the spicy vegan 'jerky' I make from older specimens as it should be arriving soon.

[Dave W]

I'll post something here after I get to sample the Meripilus jerky.

Henry, there is an excellent mushroom club based in Connecticut.

http://comafungi.org/

If you are a skilled microscopist, and you can take good micro photos, this should be a treat for all of us. Usually a KOH mount of a spore deposit or a stained mount of a section of a gill/tube magnified at 400x provides much useful information. But in some cases, 1000x in an oil-immersion mount is required to observe subtle details. Mushroom Expert has a good intro to using a microscope to study fungi.

http://www.mushroomexpert.com/microscope.html

[Dave W]

Well, when I read the label on the jerky --Thai green curry Meripilus jerky-- I put on my fireman's hat before tasting. So I wasn't surprised by the very hot/spice flavor. On the other hand, one piece I sampled was rather chewy, meaning that one small amount lasted a long time in the mouth. I thought the chewiness was a nice feature. The combination of texture and flavor makes this jerky something that's appreciated in small amounts. I'll be sure to have some with me whenever I'm out on the boat casting for largemouth bass, wanting an occasional bite of something that lasts awhile.

[ChefsWild]

Yep! The idea was to take advantage of the chewy texture of an older polypore, saturate it with nice flavor, and basically mimic the texture of meat jerky using a mushroom. I like the stuff and put up about as much as I can forage every season.

[Dave W]

I just tried a little more, and it's not quite as hot/spicy as the first piece I sampled, which must have been an atypically hot one. Flavor is real good along with a glass of good quality IPA. Good stuff!