June Theme Day -The Beauty of Decay: Shrek!

Life and beauty spring from the depths of decay.  An old dead tree stump is the host to these budding shelf mushrooms.  They remind me of the ogre Shrek, with his two little horn-like ears on the top of his head!

See more City Daily Photo Theme Day entries for June here.

Dinner Plates

These giant shelf mushrooms were growing on the base of a decaying tree up on the Ryan Road trails.

Giddy Up!

This huge mushroom was straddling the base of an old maple tree growing in our tree line. It's hard to tell if it's a single organism split in half, or if it's two separate mushrooms grown together, but it was nearly 2 feet across! Dryad was a wood nymph in ancient Greek mythology, and so this fungus is called a "Dryad's Saddle" because they often have the appearance of a large saddle. They are also related to the "Pheasant's Back" mushroom, which I've posted here as well. Below is a photo of the creamy white spongy bottom of the Dryad, which almost has the look of a slice of bread.

Tu-Lips? No, Tree Lips!

The shelf mushrooms are back again this spring, growing on an old tree in our backyard.  There are two, one growing on top of another... they kind of look like a big pair of cartoon monster lips!

Mushroom Tree

A moss covered tree trunk full of mini-shelf mushrooms on a trail at Lapham Peak in Waukesha County.

Mushrooms

During our recent quest for the elusive morels up on the Ryan Road trails, we came across a handful of other beautiful specimens of fungi (but never did find any morels this year.) These are mostly "shelf mushrooms" which usually grow on dead trees or fallen timbers. The top image is called a "Pheasant's Back." I'm not sure of the identification of the ones below.

More Fungus Among Us

After our hot and humid summer, we are also seeing quite an amazing variety of shelf-type mushrooms growing on and around the dead trees along our trails. These were both growing on the scars of where branches had been removed many years ago.

Frozen to the Gills

I didn't realize that mushrooms and other fungus could survive freezing conditions, but apparently they can. This zoom view of a toadstool-type fungus growing high up in an oak tree near Lindsay Road shows the textured gills underneath the cap. My guess is that it's not really *growing* anymore, but is suspended in time with the cold weather.

Shroom

Lots of mushrooms have been popping up lately around our area. This flat top "toad-stool" specimen was growing in the mulch under our neighbor's arbor vitae trees. I took this shot in the evening and the flash gives the image a spooky feel.

Meet Mr. Puffball

We've had a lot of rain followed by hot, humid weather and so have been inundated with a variety of mushrooms in the area. But none so wonderful as the one in the photo I took a few years back of a giant puffball mushroom in the woods near Balmer Park. I couldn't resist giving him some shades. :-)

Another one was of this wonderfully twisted toadstool growing out of a dead branch in our tree line. Looks like something right out of Alice in Wonderland!

The Coveted Morel

These little delights have a mild flavor with a meaty texture - not at all musky like some mushrooms can be. But there is a trick to finding them. Morels are only found for a short window of time during the year in the upper Midwest, usually in the cool, damp months of April and May. Production involves a delicate balance of weather and location. They prefer the soil and debris found under dead or dying elm and ash trees. That's why they say "look up" rather than down. When you see the bare, thin crowns of brown branches in a field of green budded out tree tops - you'll know where to head. THEN you can look down.. and look closely, as they can be quite camouflaged! Dried grass and shadows hide them perfectly.

While most morel hunters keep their special spots a top secret, I will say I came upon these quite by accident near one of my local hiking trails in the City of Pewaukee.

Morels are actually very lightweight and hollow inside! If you are ever lucky enough to find them, here's a good, simple recipe.