I love mushrooms; as a child I always looked forward to picking mushrooms for cooking. Gramma would caution us to be careful so we usually picked the mushrooms of the bolete family, particularly those with the large white stems with tight orange caps. This summer there was a number of mushrooms growing in the forest, many I couldn't identify but admired for their beauty like these growing on a standing dead aspen:
I think these may be Oyster mushrooms which are usually edible however they do have a poisonous look alike called Angel Wings. I'm not sure which these are but they are gorgeous.
Another mushroom that is quite pretty is
the false morel:
Some people say the false morels are edible, others say not...I chose to err on the side of caution.
This mushroom is supposedly edible if picked at the right time and cooked correctly, I don't have that knowledge but love the pattern that emerges as the skin of its cap dries and shrinks.
This mushroom has its stem growing through a length of decayed wood; against the backdrop of moss it makes a beautiful picture.
Trails of mushrooms could be found everywhere leading to
faery rings throughout the forest...
European folklore say faery rings are gateways into elfin kingdoms; circles where elves gather and dance.
In many of the beliefs faery rings were to be left undisturbed as the rings were considered sacred places.
I don't know of any Southern Tutchone folklore about mushrooms or the individual names for the mushrooms in Southern Tutchone however they are referred to generically as
ġlūr gee which translates to "squirrel food".
I found several trails and rings very late one August evening near Fox Lake.
Posts
