Tag Archives: Hedgehog mushrooms

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Mushrooms are quite beautiful, coming in so many colors and shapes. Craig Tooley photographed a Scarlet Waxy Cap. I've seen a bunch coming up on the forest floor. I think of them as flowers in the forest.

Craig also photographed a mature Parrot Waxy Cap. They have a green top when young.

Shirley Mitchell photographed some white Coral Mushrooms.

And Martin Steinpress found a group of two delicious edibles, Hedgehog Mushrooms and Black Trumpets.

Winter Chanterelles are also up in good numbers now. Gifts from the forest!

Thanks to Craig, Shirley and Martin for allowing me to share their photos with you here.

We are having a mild day - 60 degrees - with no wind. Our walk with our golden retriever, Duffy, at Gualala Point Regional Park today was wonderful. Gray Whale spouts could be seen in the calm ocean; these grays are headed north now. Big waves were crashing onto the beach. And there were surfers outside the mouth of the Gualala River, something you don't see very often.

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The storm door is open and one storm after another is lined up. Today started out with rain but this afternoon there is brilliant sunshine. Cloud watching - and photographing - is a Coast tradition. Andrew Duhl was hiking on the Stornetta Public Lands recently and got this beautiful photo.

In between storms we have a chance to see Gray Whales migrating south. We also can discover what new mushrooms might have appeared. This morning Rick and I found a fresh string of Matsutakes and the first Bellybutton Hedgehog. It's just a baby and we'll let it grow. I will share photos of these tomorrow.

Thanks to Andrew for allowing me to share his photo with you here.

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On a recent mushroom forage with my husband, Rick, we found Black Trumpets, Chanterelles and Hedgehogs. There is a veritable feast in the forest if you know what to look for!

Rick spotted this golden Chanterelle hiding under Huckleberry bushes.

 And I had luck spotting the hard-to-see Black Trumpets, which are also more properly called Horn of Plenty.

And this is what we did with the Hedgehogs we found - a wonderful omelet this morning.

That's homemade huckleberry jam on the english muffins. Life is good!

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There is a place on our property with a lot of downed wood that Rick and I suspected might harbor edible mushrooms. Yesterday we had two helpers haul the branches out of there. We showed them a Bellybutton Hedgehog and asked them to pick those that might get damaged or destroyed by their labors. There must have been a misunderstanding because they picked every Hedgehog, no matter how small! They also found Black Trumpets, Golden Chanterelles and a perfect Matsutake. Here's a picture of the haul.

When I pick Hedgehogs I bring a knife and clean as much of the dirt off right away so dirt doesn't get lodged in the "teeth." Oh well, the fellows were very proud of themselves and I couldn't help but thank them. But next year I'll be picking them myself as that's half the fun!

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There are two varieties of Hedgehog mushrooms that grow on our property and I love to eat both of them! The first Bellybutton Hedgehog, Hydnum umbilicatum, is up but needs some time to grow. Also spotted were several Sweet Tooth Hedgehogs, Hydnum repandum. I have never spotted Hedgehogs this early.

I thought I had a chance to photograph the green flash last night but no luck. There is a good reason people call it the "elusive green flash!" The sunset was beautiful, though, all yellows and oranges with the dark Pacific Ocean underneath.

To see a photo of the green flash posted earlier on this blog, click here: http://www.mendonomasightings.com/2011/04/28/the-green-flash-its-not-a-myth/