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I recently saw a post here about honey mushrooms, and noticed a user advising extreme caution. I've eaten honey mushrooms that a neighbor harvested and ate every year from the same stumps. They gave me a mild upset stomach that could've been because they were misidentified, or it could've been brought on from the placebo effect, as I had recently misidentified two toxic mushrooms. One I thought was a purple spore puffball, and was likely a pigskin poison, and another was a toxic look alike to a parasol mushroom. I acquired a couple of books and thought myself to be fairly knowledgeable after much study, however, that was just ignorant pride that, when swallowed, put me in my place, with purgative effects ? Thankfully, I've learned, as many people here have, that multiple resources, much field experience and exhaustive studies can be invaluable when identifying choice edibles, but even with a high quality microscope, it is safe to say that the more we learn, the more we realize we really don't know much about micology. I enjoy identifying a lot of various species, whether edible or not, and I've found this forum to be very helpful, in that the participants, collectively, have decades of invaluable experience. I feel like a newbie among veterans and enjoy this forum, greatly. Thank you all for your participation, and thank you to the administrator(s) for maintaining it. Hope to see y'all in the woods.

We found a few the past few days in Franklin County, Indiana. So they are starting to pop! 🍄 Good Luck!

You got it! Couldn't resist the urge to get out and about for a little bit today considering the weather. Unfortunately it was pretty much dark by the time I got out. I'll try and again earlier next time. Thank you for the motivation! : D I actually have no idea what any of these are and I'm looking forward to researching them, especially since the small ones pop up all over my yard.

Beautiful lions mane that I found, sad I wasn't here sooner! 11/27/23

Nice finds!!! Thanks for the upload!

A few tips and pics is unlikely to get the job done. To do this right, you need a good book, like "The Mushroom Cultivator" by Paul Stamets. Mushroom propagation is not like growing plants...trying to do it based on YouTube videos is a path to failure. I do suggest that you start with oyster mushrooms. They tend to be very hardy and if you can't grow those, you can't grow anything! Good luck, Bruce

That's cool. Looks like a false morel. I've never found one before, but have seen a lot of pictures of them. Gyromitra esculenta can be deadly if eaten raw and still toxic if cooked.

Looks like pheasent back also called dryads saddle

I sent an Email to Fungi Perfecti and i want to share the email I sent and their thorough response. I joined this group looking to gather support for this dream. thanks for reading. my email: I have a dream! And I need help. Is it possible to clean a river with Paul's "bunker spawn"? My dream is to clean one of the most polluted rivers in America using Paul's technology. Not only that, but to also inspire other cities to do the same across the country. I want to organize a volunteer event on earth day 2019. Between now and then I am going to work to raise money to purchase from fungi perfecti the supplies and equipment we would need to make this dream a reality. Questions: 1. Is this possible? (I feel like it has to be) 2. How many bunker spawn can I order for you at any one time? 3. Would it be more efficient to make the bunker spawn ourselves using supplies and ingredients purchased from fungi perfecti? 4. Is there a better mycoremediation technique for this type of project? Thank you so much for your time reading this. And thanks for everything that you do. Their response: Thanks for reaching out and your efforts to protect the Ohio River! One thing that we must consider as a small business is targeting our limited resources. Just to be clear this is still an experimental technology and we are not an environmental consulting firm. There are many variables to consider in large-scale remediation projects. To give you an idea of the complexity, factors to consider include screening the appropriate native mushroom species and available substrates to find combinations with the capacity for robust growth in the local climate as well as species with the targeted metabolic activity to degrade the contaminants of concern. Paul's book Mycelium Running is an excellent resource, packed with information about Mycorestoration -- the use of mushrooms to heal landscapes -- and is considered to be a manual for the mycological rescue of the planet! To read the methods and results of past experiments using Mycoberms to create an inoculated drain field, see the online article A Novel Approach to Farm Waste Management. Further experiments have been done to assess the removal of bacteria by such bags of myceliated wood chips; research results are available in our online article Mycofiltration Enters the Commons. Be sure to read and share the attached reports: http://fungi.com/pdf/articles/Fungi_Perfecti_Phase_I_Report.pdf http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0925857414002250 Simply, growing Stropharia rugoso-annulata - AKA the Garden Giant or Wine Cap - might be of interest to you. It's the species that Paul first observed attracting bee activity, as the bees were seen sipping on the mycelium in a garden bed. Here is a link to the recent breakthrough article, published Thursday, Oct 4th 2018 in the journal Nature: Scientific Reports. This is a huge milestone in our work to help bees overcome Colony Collapse and to secure our food supply for future generations. You can cultivate this mushroom species in one of two ways: by starting with the Indoor Mushroom Patch first, or by going directly outside with the Outdoor Mushroom Patch. A Mycofilter can also be incorporated into Rain Gardens & Bioswales, by inoculating the mulch layer with Garden Giant. Creating a Be-Mushroomed Rain Garden could benefit many people locally as well as the environment/water ways. Rain gardens mimic the function of a native landscape by slowing the flow of water; allowing water to be filtered through the soil, transpired back into the air through leaves, and ultimately cleansed of pollutants before it reaches streams and other bodies of water Our coworker, Alex Taylor, also recently had his masters thesis manuscript published on this topic. http://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/10/9/1226/htm This study demonstrates that introducing saprophytic fungi into soils by applying an inoculated mulch can help improve phosphorus retention in soils. This is an innovative new ecological engineering tool that may help prevent eutrophication of downstream aquatic ecosystems. We also would encourage you to contact local Mushroom farmers/Mushroom clubs/Tree Services/Educational facilities for assistance in forming a coalition. Paul Stamets: "Every community should have a gourmet mushroom farm — to help build carbon in the soil, to provide local healthy food and to be able to recycle very proximate sources of debris and waste. Every gourmet mushroom farm (they should all be certified organic) should be reinvented as an environmental healing center so that the mycelium can be used for remediation locally. Moist mycelium weighs a lot; so shipping tons of mycelium across country does not make any sense for remediation. With the debris fields that are close to the problems, you want to keep that distance as short as possible and site the farms in close proximity. My dream is that there would thousands upon thousands of small mushroom farms spread across the world that would be tied in to healing art centers, schools, to teaching environmental sciences, to teaching basic biology and the role of fungi in nature." Also, educating local farmers on the benefits of Mycorrhizae would also limit the need for heavy use of fertilizers and other chemicals. Mycelium improves soil structure, reduces erosion, nourishes plants, and improves soil's capacity to absorb and retain moisture. Mycorrhizal fungi associate with plant roots and are known to support the plant's own ability to utilize water and nutrients in the soil, as well as their ability to cope with environmental stress. If you would like to learn more, here are a few educational articles about mycorrhizal fungi: Mushrooms and Mycelium Help the Microbiome Scientists Identify the Real King of the Forest - Fungus Mycorrhizal Management: a Look Beneath the Surface at Plant Management and Growth" Plants Talk to Each Other Using an Internet of Fungus Rascal to Remedy - Fungus on the Farm Unlocking the power of symbiosis in a warming world One of the most comprehensive sources for research done on Mycoremediation is by Harbhajan Singh entitled Mycoremediation: Fungal Bioremediation. If you are working with older substrates this video describes a method to help you begin with a clean slate. I welcome any further questions you may have, Mush love! If you love this idea and feel you can help in anyway, please contact me at nathan.robling@gmail.com or just on here. or just make this dream a reality of your own. I'm not seeking any credit for this idea or for it happening if it does. So if you can make it happen please do!

Two years ago I found my first lobster mushroom. That day I scoured the woods with my sons and found at least 30 lbs of them. To date, they are the tastiest mushrooms I've ever had. Just went out today with my sons and we probably found >60 lbs. Sadly, more than 90% of them were already past their edibility life, but that still left us with about 7 lbs of good ones (after cleaning them). Note to self- "Go in late July/ first week of August." The lobster mushroom isn't just a mushroom. It's a mutation of either a Milky or Russula that has been parasitized by an ascomycete. It then retards the fruiting body of the mushroom, making it unidentifiable. The gills become ridges, it deforms the shape and gives it a lobster tail appearance. The best thing about them is that when they mutate, something happens to the meat that makes it much more delectable than the original host mushroom. I find them in coniferous forests usually on a western slope near(and on) trails and paths that are well shaded from the afternoon sunlight. They really don't seem to need a lot of moisture to grow, but I find most of them in the vicinity of tributaries and lakes or ponds. If you've found them in other habitats, I'd love to hear about your experience.

Those do look like Lilac Boletes to me. http://www.mushroomfarm.com/mushroom-species/boletes/xanthoconium-separans.html Most boletes that do not have a red pore surface and do not stain blue on bruising are edible. But not all. And "edible" does not necessarily mean "good." Getting a book or two and studying up is a good idea. There's a lot of good information on the web, but a lot of misinformation, too. Bruce

Found a nice batch yesterday.

Went looking for gold and found blacks... Nice flush of over 300 black trumpets. Just wow!

These morels were formerly classified as Morchella Semilibera. This is the beginning of the peak season for these Morchellas. It takes a lot to make a pound, but they're fun and easy to find under hickory. They lost that beautiful orange hue within minutes of picking them. This is the first time I've ever found this species. Today in Lake County, IN. I'm planning to eat them tomorrow.

As near as I can tell, here in northern Newton county, the morel season is just starting, but there are many other fungi that spring up. Among them are these really neat looking urnulas. I only found two immature morels, but the forest floor is laden with these black, saprophytic goblets. These can also be parasitic on oak. And the first morel of the season ? (For me)

We will likely be responding in a faster timeframe as the season picks up. Sorry for the slow responses. Please note that this organization has no paid staff, only volunteers.

Thanks for sharing. The Amanita is Amanita muscaria var. guessowii. Also Suillus americanus.

I would get a couple good field guides and try to find someone to help you learn. One guide i would get is, Edible Wild Mushrooms of Illinois and surrounding States. If possible find someone close to you and see if they will help you learn some of the good ones.

I have tasted the bitter bolete in a dish I had prepared, and it is a mistake I will only make once. They are aptly named.

Taste is an important feature for identifying mushrooms. It is safe to taste any mushroom. But taste does not mean swallow.

Maitake!!!!! Arms got tired on the way out the woods!

Huge oyster finds Monday!

Mark that place for next year

Wish I would have found some of these a few days earlier 😅

I'm recently retired - old but young at heart! I am looking for comrades to hunt mushrooms with throughout IN! I like hunting alone - but it gets boring! Looking for fun individuals to form a group! Interested?

Bought some roadside morels in Indianapolis 2 weeks ago. They were pretty gritty and sandy so I'm not sure where they were collected, but the guy said they were way down south. Spent 2 hours today in North Salem Indiana searching what I thought would be prime spots with no luck. Did get a few pheasant back so not a total loss. And any time spent in the woods foraging is better than anything else I could be doing with my time.

Working 3rd shift. Ran out to the woods quick. Found a couple. Seems early to me.

Supposed to be king oysters but thinking that was not the case, must have mixed up liquid cultures. Had a contamination/moisture issues with the rest of the buckets as I got lazy so only 4 of 10 2gallon buckets fruited. Going to try cloning chanterelles with 12" egg crates as the medium like I'm doing with these oysters. Some of you may know the trash bag method and that's basically what I'm doing. Straw logs work great, straw buckets... not so much. TLDR trash bag tek you'd take either grain spawn or the raw fresh fruit and place in the center of a stack of egg crates or news paper/books after saturating the egg cardboard with RO/distilled sterile water while in the trash bag. Tie off bag, wait 3 or 4 weeks then take the now solid block of mycelium out and put into a fruiting chamber or just open the bag enough for decent air exchange. Done

Consider one more point: Chaga should not be collected in regions with high radioactive backgrounds. It is known that the degree of accumulation of radionuclides by fungi strongly depends on what and where they grow. Fungi growing on wood always accumulate radioactive elements to a much lesser extent than soil ones. The season of collecting chaga, no matter what you read about it, does not matter. Just proceed from when you have free time or when the Chaga is seen best. Usually, chaga mushroom is most convenient to extract in winter. At this moment, the forest is bare, and large black sclerotia are perfectly visible against the background of white birches and white snow.

Consider one more point: Chaga should not be collected in regions with high radioactive backgrounds.

If you're talking about aquatics, see https://bloomington.in.gov/sites/default/files/2017-06/Griffy Lake Aquatic Vegetation Management Plan Feb 2017.pdf If it's land stuff, I suspect autumn olive, bush honeysuckle and/or garlic mustard. Bruce

It does look like wood ear. I personally don't know of any toxic lookalikes. There is always a risk when consuming wild mushrooms. It's best to be certain of the identification of them prior to sampling any (even ones that are commonly choice or good edible species). Sometimes some people will have a toxic reaction to one, when others never do. When consuming a wild mushroom for the first time, I usually keep a sample in the fridge and another sample in the freezer so that any people that are survived by me can assist the coroner in knowing if this was the cause of my death...?

Hello, first time posting, long time lurking. I have a huge crop of these in a shadowy bed of freshly mulched hostas in my backyard. I think these are deer shield mushrooms, but I'm new to this game and I want to be sure.

Welcome. Here is a good list of references for our region. http://www.mycoguide.com/guide/resources/books

I agree! Hot and humid, but a good foray. In the woods probably 10 degrees cooler, but the humidity....

I've signed in on the Indiana mushrooms website.

Genus and species names are defined by the first person to "describe" them in the technical literature. As such, there is no way to definitively categorize them based on the name itself...it simply involves a lot of rote memory. Most introductory guides should provide you with the scientific names of any mushroom fruiting body that they may be talking about. If they don't, look elsewhere. Orders and families are another matter entirely and again, any good guide should be organized along those lines (Russulaceae, Polyporaceae, Agaricaceae, etc). Hope this helps, Bruce

Found my first hen of the season

Lovely!

Found today

The Bolete is Xanthoconium separans

Mmmmm. You're making me hungry! One of my mushroom reference books offers this little repartee' on Laetiporus: "Does it really taste like chicken?" "Real chicken doesn't taste this good." B

Two evenings ago, my wife pulled some out of the freezer, part of the 2016 harvest. We needed to either eat it or throw it out. After trimming for freezer burn, she dipped the resulting strips in milk and rice flour and pan-fried it. Prepared this way, we both agreed that the two-year-old stuff was all but indistinguishable from fresh Laetiporus "fingers" that I'd collected just a few days previously. Having rained two days ago, I'm hoping to find more today...with luck, my cauliflower mushrooms will be fruiting again, too. Bruce

I will ge my buddy to take a few more picks to get a better idea. I do a lot of mushrooms hunting but always stay with what I know but am always looking to expand my knowledge about mushrooms so all my friends always ask me to identify what they have seen or found. Personally I have giant puffballs on my property and morels. I also hunt chicken of the woods and hen of the woods. But I am always looking for others too eat but never without positive I.d. I always take photos to help positively I’d them too. Here a few.

We eat a lot of boletes. The rules I use is if you bruise it or slice it and it turns blue, leave it in the woods. If it does not bruise blue you can put a tiny bit in your mouth to taste if it is bitter and spit it out. These are not poisonous, just too bitter to eat. The ones that are not bitter are safe to eat. Of course always double check in your mushroom ID book. Remember this does NOT pertain to gilled mushrooms.

I found someone who is knowledgeable about chantrelles, he offered to take me out this week. I'll let you know how we do!

I have not inoculated wood myself (yet), but rumor has it that oysters will grow aggressively. Bore holes 1" deep and 5/16" in diameter every 6" in willow, poplar or cottonwood, poke a small plug of oyster fruiting body in each hole, cover with beeswax, and keep it wet. Be advised that the type of wood matters -- building lumber is mostly spruce or pine and most Indiana species will NOT colonize it (perhaps a good thing). Let me know if you meet with success!

Anyone finding any in central part of the state? Last year was bad for me some ready and raring to go. Did not even get a shot at I tom turkey last season. Bad luck and need to break it