A foraging trip in Falmouth today yielded a number of edible mushrooms (in addition to the sighting of a lot of interesting non-edible ones not described here).

Basket of foraged edible mushrooms – Coral Fungi, Puffballs and Boletes.

The first edible we came across was a Coral Fungi, Clavulina cinerea, also known as the Gray Coral fungi. The individuals we found were approximately 3 to 4 inches tall, and had an erect, coral-like shape, with many branches forming from the base. The branches were light colored (white to tannish gray) with dark, pointed tips. This species occasionally becomes blackened at the base when attacked by another species of parasitic fungus, Spadicioides clavariae. An interesting fact about Gray Coral fungi is that the species name “cinerea” is derived from a word that means cinders, and refers to the smoky or ashen color the fungus often displays. All sources that I’ve consulted indicate that this fungus is edible, but that it has “no significant culinary value”. I suppose dinner tonight will be the deciding factor about that.

Coral Fungi

A second edible species we encountered was the Pear-shaped Puffball, Lycoperdon pyriforme. In general, puffballs have a thin spore case that is often covered with spines or warts, and are characterized by a white spore mass when young. This description is true of the Pear-shaped Puffball, which is pear-shaped to nearly round and has an outer layer composed of tiny warts or short spines (seen in the photo below). It often grows in clusters, rather than singly. The outer color of the Pear-shaped puffball begins white, and then darkens to brown as it ages. The spore mass (inner portion of the puffball) is firm and white at first, but becomes powdery and dark olive brown upon maturity. They are common on decaying wood, and in fact, we did find these puffballs on a dead oak tree. The Pear-shaped Puffball is gathered as an edible worldwide (it is found throughout Europe, Asia and North America), but is only edible when it is still immature and the inner flesh (spore mass) is still firm and white. When eating puffballs, you should first remove the tough outer skin, and avoid any that have started to turn yellow, olive or brown, since this indicates that the spores are maturing.

Pear-shaped Puffballs