Weekend Edibles

[Matt Breuer]

Very nice! That log deserves a GPS marking...

B-Man, I've never heard of someone breaking out in hives from a mushroom before!

pikestabber, get yourself a couple of books. Mushrooms Demystified and National Audubon Society's Guide to North American Mushrooms. Join a group on Facebook like Minnesota Mushrooms or Minnesota Mushroom Forum, and watch for their forays. You will learn more on an 8 hour foray than you will reading for years on the net and in books. Search for Mikeology on YouTube. He's a WEALTH of knowledge, and he's taught me a ton over the last year. Awesome guy too. Get out with people who know something, that's the best. If you're in Rapids, and want to swing toward Bena and meet up sometime, I'm down. I hunt south of there a lot...

[pushbutton]

Hey Pat, I found your log and took them all

Actually left all of them as I have plenty of shrooms in the freezer to last me a while and have too many garden veggies that need to be attended to. Yeah, the chicken fall flush is going strong here as well and in our walk last night saw quite a few.....but no hens yet. Good thing is that the chicken "brains" are out and the hens usually follow. Thats my technical term for them, but maybe Matt can come up with a more scientific Still looks to be a week or two away yet though.

[jerkin'm]

Some nice young oozy ones there.. I took all the ones I found as I supply a few people..Note to self..Have kids wear a backpack too...I had them strapped on like hind quarters...

[Matt Breuer]

Looks like you've got some cincinnatus there too in the cooler, eh? Nice mix, and a good haul!

We too quit taking any chickens about a month ago. Loads in the freezer. We found 40+ pounds the last time out, so the fall push is definitely on. There's nothing like walking over a hill and seeing a fresh chicken. Best feeling a mushroom hunter can have I think...

Technical term for the pics you posted... young chicken of the woods. Jerkbait.

[pushbutton]

Yep, they are just prime, but again, feeling like Martha lately, without all the hired staff to go along with. Have fun cleaning all of yours.....

Pikestabber, Matt already gave you probably the best advice and would certainly take him up on his offer. I would also add that you just have to go out and start walking the woods and start putting in the time studying via book or internet. Yes, different areas of the state are going to hold different varieties in different quantities than others. Jerkin'm and I have more access to old growth oak stands than many do and have an easier time finding particular varieties, conversely, hardly a morel to be found.....take what ever nature gives you. Suppose some of the best areas is where the pine forest and deciduous forests meet. Would think something like the Brainerd area would be ideal.

Have been doing this for a few years now and think it is simply one of the coolest, cheapest forms of entertainment out there. An old plastic shopping bag and a pair of dirty shoes is all you really need to get in the game.....well that and some mosquito repellent. Also a great activity if you have young ones. Instead of watching cartoons, Jr. is out in the woods, getting fresh air, and learning about the wonders of life. Actually have to keep myself in check and forgo the quest temporarily and let him check out the critter holes, cool bugs, and golf balls....you will be amazed of where you will find them

When you get started, there are about a dozen varieties out there that are "pretty safe" ...... oysters, morels, chanterelles, lobsters, hedgehogs, corals, giant puffballs, bears head tooth, lions maine, king boletus, as well as previous posts of the chickens and up coming ones of the hens. While not all are foolproof, with a half a brain and due diligence, they are really not that hard to figure out, but, yes, please be careful and by all means ask away...besides Matt, we will not be able to identify random shrooms, but if it is one of those rather easily identifiable ones we should be able to help with a fairly decent pic.

[Matt Breuer]

It's lies, I can't ID for jack. I am constantly asking for ID's on stuff, or nosing around in my books trying to match stuff up. pb is right though, with a good pic we can probably figure it out...

He's also right about areas... Rapids is similar to Bemidji, but you're closer to the Duluth jungle of chants and lobsters, which is nice. Up here hen of the woods, chicken of the woods, lions mane, porcini, etc... are really tough to come by. I've never found a hen, or lions mane, or porcini. The Metro seems to have it all, except the black morels, which we get to pile in every spring living in the north country... Plus we can bag grouse while picking fall 'shrooms, which they can't do! Muwahaha!

[pushbutton]

Grouse smouse.....we have pigeons! Am actually serious about the chicken brains as I like to call them. In my mind, anyway, they are a sort of subspecies as they are really compact, not nearly as shelf like or sprawling, see them more often in the fall, and about the time the first ones start rotting, the hens start showing up.

[jerkin'm]

Yep, now rubbing in the grouse and mushroom combo...NOT COOL!!! I have a 20 gauge that's been itching to chase grouse for a while now....Still trying to get a hen today...just a lonely chicken or whatever Matt called them above..oh, and a few pounds of perfect oysters.. one frog, tons of yellow colored, semi slippery bolete type shrooms..lots of LBM, LGM, LOM, LWM's...

[pikestabber]

Thanks for all the help, guys...sounds like some good information to get me started. We just bought a house and are moving this week/weekend which is really unfortunate timing as I see there is a foray in Cloquet on Saturday (just over an hour away for me and likely to be similar mycology grounds to my own). Of course, I might have A LOT more time to shroom hunt if I bailed on unpacking this weekend...

[NoWiser]

Pikestabber, I'm not sure if it has been mentioned, but check out the book "100 edible mushrooms". This will cover 90% of what you will find in the Grand Rapids area, and has color pictures of everything, as well as which poisonous look-alikes you need to watch out for. Mushrooms Demystified is an awesome book, and regarded as the "bible" for mushroom hunters, but it can be overwhelming, especially if you are just getting into it. "100 Edible Mushrooms" was my first, and is still my favorite book.

It really is a great sport, and as mentioned before is about as cheap of a hobby as you can find. I think I'll head out after work this week and try to find my some chickens and hens! I LOVE hens!!

[Matt Breuer]

Bang.

[pikestabber]

Looks like a nice find, Matt. What is what in that spread you have there?

NoWiser--thanks for the info!

[pushbutton]

Its just a few lobster mushrooms as well as chicken of the woods....one, he just painted to look like a hen

[Matt Breuer]

We were up north this past weekend and my wife and I left the kids with grandma and we hunted 2 chunks of land. First spot we found 3 hens, 2 of which were old, as well as 5 chickens, all past prime. Also got the lobsters there. Moved on to a different spot where I had found some chickens this spring and absolutely had a blast. Found 5 more chickens, almost all in perfect shape. The one pictured was nearly 30lbs. I didn't need any more COW, but my wife wanted to pick it, so we now have enough COW to last us through the winter...

[jerkin'm]

All right Matt...you win..kinda like winning the first fish contest with a 7" walleye though...

[jerkin'm]

Kids found some oysters on my woodpile today..They looked just like white hens...

[Deitz Dittrich]

man-- oysters are one of my faves by far.. them and chants...

Nice find kids!

[pushbutton]

Did you get lost in the woods all summer Double D or just fishing too much?

[Deitz Dittrich]

Not enough in the woods at all.. and there is no such thing as TOO MUCH FISHING!!!