ADVANCED SHAGOLOGY

Shaggy Manes

I do not normally have the chance to pick more mushrooms than I can actually eat. It does happen on occasion with Chicken of the woods and Oysters; but they are simple. Just cook and freeze. I kind of figure that anyone who has ever gathered mushrooms of more than one variety has at sometime placed some Shaggy Manes in the refrigerator for "tomorrow".

Tomorrow never came; did it? Yep that paper towel covered with black goo. Come on admit it now and move on.

I picked more Shaggy Manes than I could eat yesterday and started thinking a little. It doesn't hurt too much. Why do they turn to ink so quickly? It isn't the cold, I've seen live ones sticking up through the snow. Maybe, it is from being cut from the ground; but I've rode them around in the truck all day with no visible effect. Hmmm; maybe good old Oxygen is the culprit. I do tend to think up stuff; at times.

I took some left-over Shaggy Manes and put them in a zi-lock full of water, squeezed all of the air out of the top and put them in the refrigerator. Twenty-four hour later they looked like this? I blotted them real well with paper towels and cooked them. I am happy to report that they were as good as the fresh ones yesterday!! Now we all know...No more ink blobs.

(c) 2014 High Virginia Outdoors ALL Rights Reserved

Sack of Shaggys

Shaggy Mane

I hit the jackpot today o some Shaggy Manes! Things didn't start out well on my search today. (10/8/14) But, I didn't give up. I was driving up a very narrow and crooked mountain road and had someone riding my bumper. I was getting really irritated and pulled off in a wide-spot on top of the mountain. I figured I'd let the dogs out and let the idiot get wherever he was in a hurry to get to.

I looked down the hill and couldn't believe my luck. Right there on the edge of a log road was the biggest patch of Shaggy Manes that I have ever seen. Most of the patches I find consist of about 12 - 20 mushrooms.This patch probably had two hundred. Several were way past prime and were only stalks. Some were turning to ink, But I actually picked 70-80 perfect little ones that were barely visible in the grass. Yep, never quit and always keep on looking. You never know when you will find something good.

(c)2014 High Virginia Outdoors All Rights Reserved

First Shaggy

Shaggy Mane

I picked my first bag-full of Shaggy Manes a little bit ago (10/7/14). Who predicted this on Saturday? Yep, they're starting to pop up. You'd better keep your eyes open or you will not get any.

Shaggy Mane

(c) 2014 High Virginia Images all rights reserved

Coming Soon

Shaggy Mane

You could feel it in the air this morning. Time to pull the pepper plants. Cool and drizzly. Yep, it is time for Shaggy Manes and funny looking sparrows. Soon, the first flakes will fall.

Look for shaggy blooms in any grassy area. They are hard to see; while road-hunting if an area hasn't been mowed. They are normally too old when you find them in high grass.

They can be found up into early November; if you are lucky. Don't try to keep them. Just take them home and eat them. Enjoy..

Things Change

The first week of September was coming to a close and I was accepting the fact that I wasn't going to get any Chicken of the Woods this year. I always have found most of them during the first week of July and the first week of September. Not this year. the only little skillet full that I had was in late May. I didn't have any trouble finding these mushrooms on just about every trip; my problem was that they were all way too old when I found them.

I have found a lot during the last 7 days or so and now have close to twenty pounds of frozen Chicken of the Woods. They will sure make our seven month winter a little more tolerable. I have yet to find ANY oyster mushrooms this year. You would think that with all of the rotting stumps in this country they should be everywhere. I an hoping that our fall rains will result in a good bloom before everything freezes up. Shaggy Manes should be popping up soon, too. Yep, things can quickly change; if you don't give up.

Note: To freeze Chicken of the Woods you must first saute them in olive oil or butter and then freeze them Chicken broth is another simmering option. Try whatever you want, but they must be heated before freezing.

 (c) 2014 High Virginia Outdoors Photos (c) High Virginia Images All Rights Reserved

Hemlock Polypore

Hemlock Polypore (C)HVI 2013

We do not usually think of finding fungi or mushrooms in mid-November in this region. I found this interesting specimen today (11/19/13) on Shavers Mountain in Randolph County. It is (Ganoderma tsugae) Hemlock Polypore, also known asHemlock Varnish Shelf. It is very pretty and shiny. I know I should have cleaned the dust off; before taking the photo. But as always; what you see here is REAL. This is not an edible fungi. It is ground into a powder and used in tea in Asian countries. Supposedly as an anti- inflammatory.Ling Chih.