Tag Archives: Oyster Mushrooms

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Craig Tooley found these Oyster Mushrooms growing on a dead tree near his Sea Ranch home.

Their role in Nature is to decompose dead wood. Many of us enjoy eating these delicious mushrooms. Oyster mushrooms are grown commercially now. In David Arora's excellent pocket guide, "All That the Rain Promises and More," he points out that their growth is shelf-like. Banana Slugs love these mushrooms too!

Thanks to Craig for allowing me to share his photo with you here. To see much more of Craig's nature photography, here is the link to his website: http://www.ruffimage.com

It's storming here today! I'll report rain totals tomorrow. The Pacific Ocean is very loud, with huge, crashing waves. And the King Tides arrive Friday through Sunday. Lots to marvel at!

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Amy Ruegg photographed a recent sunset at Pebble Beach, on The Sea Ranch.

Amy also found Oyster mushrooms.

And Scott Mercer found a King Bolete, boletus edulis, in his yard.

I heard that Catherine Miller found her first King Bolete this morning, along with the first Yellow Chanterelle. A combination of some rain (.14 inches at our place early Friday morning, and some heavy fog earlier in the week, seem to have prompted the first bloom of choice, edible mushrooms. Hooray!

Thanks to Amy and Scott for allowing me to share their photos with you here.

The ground is damp, the sun is out and the temps this afternoon are in the high sixties. Perfect!

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One of the first mushrooms of the autumn I enjoy spotting is the colorful Dyer's Polypore. Rick and I found two growing along our seasonal creek. The one on the left is growing in a small huckleberry bush.

These are inedible mushrooms. Their job in nature is to help decompose dead wood. That said, we found it growing on the roots of a big, healthy Douglas Fir. Perhaps there is a dead root they are working on.

Dyer's of yarn prize these mushrooms as they impart a yellow color when young, like these. As the mushrooms age, they give a deep brown color.

We did find some Oyster Mushrooms on a downed Tan-Oak. Oysters, edible mushrooms, grow on dead hardwoods.

We will be looking for the first Boletus edulis to arrive. Soon, me thinks!

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Oyster mushrooms have bloomed on a downed Tan Oak in our forest. This  tree came down last year and we left it in place in the hopes that we'd get these mushrooms - they grow on dead hardwood. Our hopes were rewarded!

Oyster Mushrooms by Jeanne Jackson (Large)

And a Dyer's Polypore has bloomed too - not an edible, but beautiful to see and watch evolve.

Dyer's Polypore by Jeanne Jackson

The new polypore is the light-colored one. The dark brown polypore was last year's bloom. It's unusual for the old one to still be entact. These mushrooms are used by dyers of wool. When young they dye wool yellow or orange. When older, the dye wool brown. Their role in Nature it to decompose dead wood.

I have a photo of the first Boletus edulis, a choice edible. Four were found at The Sea Ranch a few days ago. But I am sharing it first with the Independent Coast Observer with my Sightings column. It will be out on Thursday!

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We are waiting for a rainstorm that is due in late tonight. It has been very dry until now but I didn't think it was dry enough for Prince mushrooms to fruit! They are considered a summer mushroom. But right alongside our road, six Prince mushrooms popped up yesterday.

I have noticed a fresh bloom of Oyster Mushrooms on a standing dead Tan-oak tree in our forest. Here is a photo Ron LeValley took of several pristine Oyster Mushrooms. Ron advises getting them while they are young and delicious.

Thanks to Ron for allowing me to share his photo with you here. To see much more of Ron's nature photography, here is his website: http://www.levalleyphoto.com/home/