WiseAcre Gardens

Phyllotopsis nidulans

This is a late summer - fall fruiting mushroom most commonly found in the eastern Great Lakes region but it is widely distributed throughout North America. In warmer areas the season will extend through winter. Distinguishing characteristics include a pale pink to pinkish brown spore print, orange colored cap and gills, hairy caps, an unpleasant odor and a taste as bad as the smell.

I can’t confirm the last two characteristics. I didn’t smell anything since I don’t usually stick my nose in where it doesn’t belong. And there’s no way to get me to put anything named “Oyster” (mock or not) in my mouth.

Now I could be wrong about the identification. My Peterson Field Guide to Mushrooms states that Nestcap is frequently confused with Phyllotopsis subnidulans which has a more orange color, thinner - more widely spaced gills and curved spores. (instead of smooth, short elliptic ones)

EDIT: Dec. 4, 2008 (4 hours later) I went back to get a sniff. There was no odor. One web site did mention there was no odor if these were growing on conifers. (dead of course) These were growing on a Hemlock taking a dirt nap.

Also added this photo so you could get an idea of the size.

Once again the images are linked to larger sizes (1024 x 768) for a closer look or to use as desktop backgrounds.

Lenzites betulina

Dec. 2, 2008

This is actually a polypore. The underside has gills though and that made identifying this mushroom tough for me. At first I thought I had found the Turkey Tail Mushrooms I was looking for but realized upon seeing the underside I had found something else. No sweat I thought. This must be the False Turkey Tail I saw in the guidebooks. Nope. The false turkey tails have a smooth underside. Now I had to dig deeper in order to find out what this was. Than goodness I found it on a dead Birch tree. With that clue I managed to find it searching on Google.

I’m just learning to identify mushrooms so it’s easy to understand why I got confused. Shelf and bracket fungi are “not’ supposed to have gills. Thank goodness I make a habit of taking photos of the undersides. Otherwise I would have easily misidentified this mushroom.

I have to remember there are actually several gilled polypores. One thing I don’t need to remind myself is this one is inedible. For me all mushrooms are. Something about the texture of fungi turns me off more than the taste. With this one the texture wouldn’t be so bad if I was a beaver. These things are tough and woody.

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By now regular visitors don’t need to be reminded that I link many images to larger ones sized 1024 x 768. They’re good to get a closer look and to use as desktop backgrounds.

The hamlet of Morley, NY saw heavy traffic yesterday. At least one local resident overheard himself discribe the traffic as crappy. It appeared that a single Deere was responsible for the shitty road conditions found a little way down the road.

On one of the busiest travel days of the year the air was filled with the sound of honking. Thousands of travelers took to the air to head south.

Leaving the traffic behind I went looking for Green Gift ideas but by this time of year the selection is pretty slim. The first real green item I stumbled upon was fencing. Handmade of 100% eastern White Cedar this fencing will last for decades without any maintance but it takes special care to get the green look.

One item that dates back long before electric shavers was shelved in great supply but none seemed to be moving. Once used to strop razors these Birch Brackets are now left to produce a green apple smell while decomposing dead Birch trees.

Birch polypore, Piptoporus betulinus are leathery unlike the more common woody conks that grow on dead trees. Strips cut from them are used as a strop for razors. The annual fruiting bodies emerge in the spring and summer from wood that is extensivly decayed.

Looking up the tree trunk gives one a different perspective.

All but the geese image is linked to a larger size (1024 x 769) take a closer look or use them as desktop wallpaper / backgrounds. No other use is implied.