Don't forget to keep a eye out for your favorite fall mushrooms while stump shooting and scouting. This seems to be a good year and these are some of the largest Chanterelle's I have ever found.
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This is about half of what I picked and I caution everybody do not eat mushrooms unless you no 100% what you are doing. There's plenty of books out there with great pictures and explanations on hundreds of different types of mushrooms.
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I picked these out because they are about the average size that I find. Chanterelle's have a mild taste and have very sweet smell when there cooking.
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Bottom side!
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This is how they look in the woods growing wild, Pretty hard to miss them really if you have them in your neck of the woods.
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Close up view!
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"Hen of the woods" is another of my favorite fall mushrooms. They grow later in the season perfect for bow hunters. October and November is when most are found.
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They can get quite large but have great camo in the woods. I don't know these gentelmen but they were walking down the road right by were I hunt them. They seemed shocked that I knew what kind of mushroom they were. The guy on the left is a president of some mushroom group from around here and was quite excited over there find.
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They like to grow at the base of dead and dying hardwood tree's.
So while your out there scouting,stump shooting or hunting keep a eye out for nature's bounty. Again, Please make sure you get a good mushroom book and study up on them first before you harvest any mushrooms so you don't pick the wrong kinds.
Tracy
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Those would be real good sauteed, and put over some antelope steaks!
Thanks for the pictures Tracy. I knew what the Chanterelle's looked like but wasn't sure about the Hen of the woods. I've never seen any of the Hen of the woods fresh but have never looked for them in the fall either.
Do You slice them and fry "em like Morels?
Excellent. We've had one of the best years ever for chanties but I think that they're over. I picked some smooth chanties (I think that's what you have pictured) last night and they were starting to dry out. We hardly ever see the hens in my neck of the woods but I'll be paying close attention for chicken mushrooms (sulphur shelves) and stumpies (honey mushrooms) for the coming weeks.
I shy away from picking wild mushrooms, I don't know what the heck I'm doing.
Nice photos, I have had some picked by guys who knew what they were doing.....and they were very very good. Cooked with red onions and garlic over venison chops....yum'o!!!
I don't know what the heck I'm doing with mushrooms but check out this massive puffball I found Saturday...
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Man those are some nice shrooms! I just found a clump of chicken mushrooms. I like the oysters in particular. Brick tops, chantrelles....man nothing better than venison and mushrooms.
Great advice about being careful. I have a book(peterson's field guide) and the best way to ID mushrooms is by spore printing. Easy enough to do, and well worth the time and effort.
Cool thread.
That is funny. The guy on the right is a good friend of my wife. She is from Lawrence.
Them puffballs are great eating, never had the hen of the woods or the chantels. I'll be looking from now on. Pick the tar out of morels in the spring but don't eat'em just give to the oldtimers that can get out pick'em anymore. thay sure do love'em.
what part of Kansas are you from? I grew up in Manhattan and have only rarely seen chantrelles..
Lucas
I forgot about the sulfer shelf but I haven't found any in my woods. They taste great my boss brings a couple in every year, Finds them around a old apple tree stump in his neighbor's yard.
Thanks Ron,Brett the hard part is finding the hen's because unless there overly large they blend in very well but are so worth it if you find them. All the ones we find are on Oak trees mostly dead ones but some living.
Jim I have a picture of a puffball that my son and I found last year. That thing was huge but to far gone to eat I will look for it.
Tracy
great finds, Tracy :thumbsup:
I usually find puffballs past their prime; the only others I'm confident about are the morels in the spring.....
I used to work for the University of Michigan; in the mollusk division. Right down the hall was the mycology department.
I met a half dozen new heads of the lab there- and I would say 'what happened to Larry?' or 'what happened to Carl?' ( past heads of the department).
Time and time again I would get the answer that 'it turns out if you eat mushroom x and mushroom c- it kills you'.
Morels can knock you into another dimension if they are not cooked; oyster mushrooms eaten dried but not cooked can help acquaint you with your bathroom.
As mentioned - get a book; and learn about mushrooms. In doubt- don't eat it. And when you do eat a new mushroom to you-- try a small bite first to see if its the chamber with a bullet in it for your physiology.
I love mushrooms- but I only eat what I know for certain I can eat.
Keep in mind too; that its like drinking tequila - you know; one mushroom two mushrooms three mushrooms ....floor.
In other words some mushrooms are toxic to some people at a lower level than others might encounter.
I have a neighbor that used to own an ambulance company. He worked race tracks; and concerts. When he worked Greatful dead concerts he always took cans of sauerkraut with him; as with many people a couple fork fulls of it would bring people down off magic mushroom overdoses in a quick second.
I don't know if that works for any other mushroom; but in a pinch; I would try it rather than drop dead or risk running out of toilet paper.
Some mushrooms can be used for dyes for leather and cloth; and its worth getting a book to inform you of whats what out there.
.....this is the new head of the mycology department..... :saywhat:
Good to see you up and in the woods Tracy...
Those are some nice mushrooms.
That's good info Brian. There are many Mushrooms that are edible at different stages of their growth. I have some large Toadstools that grow in My yard every fall. They get about a foot talland are claimed to be one of the most delicious Mushrooms in the world. But 1 ounce will kill a human in less than 1 hour with total organ shutdown.
I have a friend who can't eat even 1 Morel. He has a extremly low tolerance for them. Luckily I don't suffer from that cause I love Morels.
Good find...Chantrelles are the only shroom I know to pick,but while I have been on the lookout,I haven't found any YET!!! :thumbsup:
Another good fall shroom is the Sheepshead.
Sorry I don't have a pic, but they get as big as Hen of the Woods but are colored more like Chanterelles
Check out morelmushroomhunting.com, or mushroomexpert.com. Good info on all kinds of mushrooms. Morels and chanterelles are easily identified, and probably the safest for the amateur.
Several years ago my place had chanterelles by the basket-full, but there have been practically none since. Last spring I found over 100 morels here. Still some in the freezer. Venison chops with a morel cream sauce... nothing better on the planet! The last package of chops will be thawing shortly. The halved morels can go in the pan still frozen.
Cool find, Tracy. Thanks for the info.
For what it's worth, I believe the sheepshead and the hen of the woods are one in the same. They come in several different colors like many mushrooms do.
I found a bunch of horse mushrooms this morning. Half of them are frying in butter and onion as I type this and the other half will go into beef stew tomorrow.
Edit for an update. Oh my gosh, I just had the horse mushrooms sauteed in butter and onion with a splash of seasoned salt. Whoa brother, they're delicious, truly some of the best I've ever eaten.
Alright Gangreen, You can't say it's the best You've ever eaten and not show a pic. I've never heard of a horse mushroom and am curious what it looks like.
Thanks
OK, ask and ye shall receive. Here you go bretto, horse mushrooms. The "collar" around the stem, the pinkish-brown gills and a chocolate brown spore print are the identifiers. They're typically in and around people's yards and can often be found under or near spruce trees. I've had them before and thought they were good but not unlike the button mushrooms you buy at the store but these ones were knock your socks off delicious.
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Know your stuff- deadly amanitas have a passing resemblance to the "horse mushrooms" in the picture.
Old saying: "There are old mushroom hunters, and bold mushroom hunters, but there are no old bold mushroom hunters".
I only go for the morels in the spring and the beefsteaks and black velvets in the fall. they are the only ones that are non mistakeable to me.they say that there are tons of edible mushrooms that are edible if you know what your looking for. but i dont so ill stick with my select few.
Yes, There are alot of mushrooms you can eat just be careful and know 100% :readit:
Tracy
Don, you're correct about the amanitas. The horse mushroom will give a brown spore print and the amanitas a white print. Be careful.
Hows this for a puffball? It was starting to get soft and I won't eat them in that stage to risky.
nurayb, Your right I live close to Lawrence good catch and that should answer you question Lucas as to were I'm at.
It's good to see we have some fellow mushroom hunters out there.
Tracy
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Dang Tress looks like you in that pic bud!
I kinda thought so too when I posted it. :goldtooth:
He just bought his first house and moves in a couple of weeks, Dang I'm getting old
:biglaugh:
Tracy
Your not old Tracy, your just "experienced" :D
yeah, Tracy....weddings, grandkids, houses....
Where's my cane, I think I left it layin' on my rockin' chair..... :knothead:
My Dad and I really enjoy the hen of the woods mushrooms. Been checking around some of the trees that have produced for us for several years but I think we're just a little bit to early yet. If you haven't tried these they are great, I like them better than morels. We usually find them around big oak trees.
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QuoteBeen checking around some of the trees that have produced for us for several years but I think we're just a little bit to early yet.
I checked a couple spots last week, no hens yet......soon though.
OK, here are some that I found this morning. The first is a pair of hedgehog mushrooms that I found. They're pretty foolproof and safe as far as the ID is concerned.
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The next is a clump of Jack-O-Lanterns. THIS MUSHROOM IS POISONOUS. Repeat, this is a poisonous mushroom. I post the picture for educational purposes only because jacks can be mistaken for chanterelles. I won't get into the differences (get a good guide book or two, it's not that difficult to tell them apart if you know what you're looking for) but suffice it to say that they should be avoided. The guide books say that they likely won't kill you but they will give you a major case of digestive distress.
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Groundpounder, if by "beefsteaks" you are referring to the false morel, they can be dangerous too. One of my friends has eaten them all his life with no problems, but when he mixed a small one with some true morels, another of my friends was made violently ill by eating a piece. He couldn't get off the toilet all night long. He can eat true morels in quantity without problems.
No what i call beefsteaks is the lactarius volemus. they are easily identified around these parts one of the tests once you've spotted one is to look underneath at the gills they secrete a milky colored liquid . and they smell like herring fish. And to tell you the truth as many times as ive hunted mushrooms i have never given them to someone else for that very reason you have just posted.
QuoteOriginally posted by K.S.TRAPPER:
Hows this for a puffball? It was starting to get soft and I won't eat them in that stage to risky.
nurayb, Your right I live close to Lawrence good catch and that should answer you question Lucas as to were I'm at.
It's good to see we have some fellow mushroom hunters out there.
Tracy
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Holy yikes that thing is huge (or you're a wee little person). :-D
We have beefstakes around here also and I think there quite good. I will share my morels but not the beefsteaks because they can be risky to certain people.
I have grown up eating them and all my family has eaten them also with no problems.Thanks you guys for the good picks
Last night we had pork loin and chantereles, Tonight it's Buffalo t-bone's and pan fried garlic,onions and chante's requested by my wife for here birthday dinner. Man I love that woman!!
Tracy
Tracy,You'll never be able to claim that boys not Yours in court. I've got a mini Me at home also. LOL
Gangreen, Thanks for the pictures I've been away from the computer for a couple of days and was just able to check back. Thanks again.
bretto