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Graham
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Baja desert mushrooms
Hello Sharksbaja,
Following up your mushroom question... Whenever I head to Baja my wife tells me to keep an eye open for desert fungi.
Who would think there are mushrooms in the desert?
This is an example of a dried Podaxis pistillaris we found near LA Bay. The locals call it Moco del Burro, burro snot.
And this is a collection of desert mushrooms she recently displayed at the San Diego Mycological Society Mushroom Fair.
Graham
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Graham
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Podaxis pistillaris
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Santiago
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Wow - what kind of places will they grow?
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BMG
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So, are these fungi edible, poisonous or just for recreational purposes?
I think the world is run by C- students.
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Sharksbaja
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Thank you sir! Fantastic display. I've spent thousands of hours trekking thru forests looking for the exotic edibles. I currently possess over eighty
pure strains(cultures) of wild choice edibles. When I can spend more time seeking the mother of all mushrooms I'll dig deeper into Bajas' offerings.
I am certainly envious of someone who can spend so much time in the backcountry. Kudus.
Seems Iam in need of an altitude fix so I can look for saprophytes in the trees of Baja. What time of year did you find the Fly Agaric?
I see there are a good number of puffballs in the collection. I can't close in on those ugly black things on the lower left. Are they a bolete of
some sort. If you could be so kind. Thanks for the post!
DON\'T SQUINT! Give yer eyes a break!
Try holding down [control] key and toggle the [+ and -] keys
Viva Mulege!
Nomads\' Sunsets
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Sharksbaja
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Here is a beautiful book my sister sent me from Cornwall.
Interesting how many of the same species are found here. Think it's all the rain?
DON\'T SQUINT! Give yer eyes a break!
Try holding down [control] key and toggle the [+ and -] keys
Viva Mulege!
Nomads\' Sunsets
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tehag
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Shrooms
One of those fungi looks remarkably like a scorpion.
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bacquito
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Mood: jubilado
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It does not look like burro snot to me. Can you eat it?
bacquito
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Graham
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Too much information??
Hello all--Graham said I could jump in under his sign-on name and answer a few queries that have come up. Here goes, to those who care to read on!
Bonni M.
??Wow - what kind of places will they grow?
Fungi are opportunists in the desert as anywhere. They "fruit" after sufficient rains hit areas such as washes, where layers rich in organic debris
that can support their growth have been deposited. They can arise basically anywhere though over the desert floor, so just keep your eyes peeled.
San Diego itself is mostly desert, and a number of these came from San Diego County between 10 to 20 miles inland. Others came from Borrego Springs
(disturbed land in a friend's backyard) and Indio, in a lot about to be paved over.
??So, are these fungi edible, poisonous or just for recreational purposes?
Most of these in the display are inedible due to their woody toughness. The Podaxis, called the "desert shaggy mane," is edible when fresh (specimen
in Graham's hand and in the rear of the exhibit are too dried-out, the state one usually encounters them in), but a respected friend, author of "In
the Company of Mushrooms," ate a fresh one a few years ago and reported it was not worthwhile. None are listed as poisonous or hallucinogenic--very
much for recreation however--the joy of getting out and looking.
??What time of year did you find the Fly Agaric?
Search during the monsoon periods amongst the ponderosa and Jeffrey pines, fir trees, and other conifer forests. This seems to peak in August. Look
under hummocks of pine needles. Of course, they may be indicators of Boletus edulis!!
??I see there are a good number of puffballs in the collection. I can't close in on those ugly black things on the lower left. Are they a bolete of
some sort. If you could be so kind. ?
These puffballs are "stalked puffballs," gasteromycetes apart from the common and giant puffball genera: Batterea stevenii, Tulostoma brumale group,
and Chlamydopus meyenianus I think are represented. The grayish dark stuff in the lower left is the remains of a volva (**Moderator--do not edit this
out, it is a remnant sac-like structure at the base of some fungal species) on the Batterea. If I can find the photo of it freshly plucked, I'll send
it.
The "gastroid agarics" pictured develop spore masses under a papery cap that eventually crumbles to passively discharge the spores. There are platey
structures for spore production that can remain after the cap is gone and that is what the black odd-looking things are in the lower RIGHT corner. I
had to shrink the photos so much to send that they are not good for enlarging. Pictured in this group is the P pistillaris, Montagnea arenarius and
Longula texensis (the black one).
!!beautiful book my sister sent me from Cornwall.
We have that book too, as well as Phillips' counterpart for North American fungi. Graham and I managed to mushroom hunt in England over New Years and
many fungi are universal, many distinctly different.
!!looks remarkably like a scorpion.
Found dead in a friend's drained swimming pool when they returned to their vacation home. Supposed to lend a bit of atmosphere to the desert display.
Dried out, beat up Montagnea from LA Bay showing plated tops:
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marv sherrill
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Very informative - I wouldn't use the Europe Mushroon id book over here - too many variables - also
The taste test in definitive to distinguish between a toadstool (poisoness) and a mushroom (edible).
Never believe one who got a C+ in a Poisoness and Edible Plants Course
Truth Flies Like an Arrow
Fruit Flies Like a Banana
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Graham
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Freshly plucked
Here it is Sharksbaja,
The black stuff is soil adhering to the volva of this Batterea stevnii, picked by Graham from our excited next-door neighbor's desert/succulent
garden:
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Sharksbaja
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| Quote: | Originally posted by marv sherrill
Very informative - I wouldn't use the Europe Mushroon id book over here - too many variables - also
The taste test in definitive to distinguish between a toadstool (poisoness) and a mushroom (edible).
Never believe one who got a C+ in a Poisoness and Edible Plants Course
Truth Flies Like an Arrow
Fruit Flies Like a Banana |
Very correct Marv. The pictures are what make the book. My bible would be " Mushrooms Demystified". An excellent comprehensive book suitable for all.
I would recommend only sampling wild mushrooms with someone who has good working knowledge of fungus. Some species are identical in many respects and
only discernable with lab equipment.
Thank you Bonnie, nice of you to give a thorough and informative post. Don't want to bore folks anymore with my "other" passion, but when I find that
mystical mushroom in Baja I'll post a pic of it.
DON\'T SQUINT! Give yer eyes a break!
Try holding down [control] key and toggle the [+ and -] keys
Viva Mulege!
Nomads\' Sunsets
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Graham
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Location: San Diego and DeTour, MI
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Finding the elusive mushrooms
You might want to begin a search in La Grulla meadow when you are in the Sierra SPM some summer.
Bonni
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David K
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This is just great to see and read!
Thanks Graham and Bonni!
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BajaNomad
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Graham
...The grayish dark stuff in the lower left is the remains of a volva (**Moderator--do not edit this out, it is a remnant sac-like structure at the
base of some fungal species)... |
Bonni - and Graham - the information was incredibly interesting. Thanks so much for sharing - including the photos.
Regards,
--
Doug Means
When I was young, I admired clever people. Now that I am old, I admire kind people.
– Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel
We know we must go back if we live, and we don`t know why.
– John Steinbeck, Log from the Sea of Cortez
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Graham
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Taste not definitive
Thanks Doug,
Gotta hand it to Bonni... she has really educated me about desert mushrooms.
__________________________________________
Marv, I may be misreading what you say above, but your reference to the taste test as being a definitive way to distinguish between poisonous
"toadstools" and edible mushrooms is a bit dangerous.
Before anyone else misunderstands and acts on that advice, I think it fair to say that some of the most deadly mushrooms have little or no taste or
may even be delicious, and ingesting even a portion of a cap may be enough to cause severe sickness, necessitate a liver transplant, or cause death.
For example in Mushrooms Demystified, this is what David Arora states about the "deadly poisonous" Amanita phalloides (Death Cap), which typically
causes one or two deaths in California every year: "The flavor... is described by survivors as excellent."
Graham
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Skipjack Joe
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One of David's greatest qualities is his sense of humor (humour to you). It's one of the first things that jump out at you when you meet him - that,
and an apparent reluctance to use a razor.
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marv sherrill
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Sorry Graham - just a little tongue and cheek humor - Guess that's why the Pharoes had official tasters.....
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Cardon
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Although I don't know why, a few years ago a friend and I attended a slide show presentation on mushrooms(accompanied by wonderful music) by a guy
named Taylor Lockwood. The show was so wonderful the entire room erupted with applause frequently during the showing.
Check out some of Taylor Lockwood's wonderful fungi photography here:
http://www.fungiphoto.com/CTLG/SYS1/A.impct.html
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Graham
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(from Bonni)
Thanks for all the interest expressed in fungi. I hope Don Jorge finds that wonderous "something new" (and even many kinds of them) on his future
treks through the desert. It might actually hook one into a new hobby--especially if someone is out there already as a birdwatcher, rockhound or
botany buff.
By the way, as curator of the desert mushroom display for the San Diego Mycological Society, if anyone collects nice specimens (whole, dried) in the
desert and wants to donate them to our exhibit I'd love to know about it. The mushrooms could also possibly end up in the San Diego Natural History
Museum herbarium if you can write down exactly where (GPS is great, but not essential) and when you collected it. One can email us though Graham's
website. It doesn't hurt to ask!
I hope people check out the amazing link about Taylor Lockwood that Cardon brought us, because just opening it could blow your minds! The luminous
colors in his fungus photos show how some species rival wild flowers in beauty. Our 11th annual mushroom fair in SD (in Balboa Park every Feb.) held
last month featured Taylor giving his fantastic presentation. I especially appreciate the impression you shared Cardon.
And thanks Marv--Graham and I figured you were jesting, but we feel responsible on this thread lest anyone wants to try a wild mushroom. For myself
when I got into this hobby, I never thought I would try a wild mushroom. I recall it took me three years of somehwat intense study to get up the
gumption to eat one, and since then it's been a lot of enjoyment of gourmet food for free!
The key is studying with people who know (experts), only eating things that are positively identified, cooking all wild mushrooms thoroughly and only
eating a small portion initially--if you are not sickened by a particular nonpoisonous mushroom type, only then try a larger serving. Remember, anyone
can react negatively to any species despite "edibility," even store-bought! Mushrooms have proteins that can be very indigestible and very unpleasant
to the GI tract--so, better less eaten than more in these cases.
And Skipjack--in case you were referring to Graham (and not David??) as I suspect--Yes, his sense of humor is definitely one of his best qualities
(kept us together nearly 15 years so far). He also has finally lost that "beard" after he returned home from almost 3 months in England in January.
Look for the reformed, clean-shaven Graham Mackintosh in future...he's still hilarious thankfully.
Bonni
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