I know it's pretty bleak out here in the "Golden State" but are any of you native Californians finding anything? My buddys and myself have found some Slippery Jacks (Boletes) up in the mountains a ways but I haven't had time to check any of my Shaggy Mane 'honey holes'. Any luck at all out there?......... I know it's dry and warm; Man, am I ever ready for rain and winter!!......Happy Shroomin'.......
JT, here on the central coast, because of the coastal fog/rain, we have found a couple pounds of chanterelles, should be thick with them right now. Normally about two inches of rain at this point. Rain on its way next week, should produce quite a few chanterelles around here.
I am up in the Sierras over this Thanksgiving holiday. We are now in over a foot of snow. But I found some fairly dry mushrooms a few days ago before the weather turned. I’m not very good at identifying them yet, as I am new to Mushroom Hunting. I believe they are bollettes? Can you advise what they are if you know please. Thank you in advance and Happy Thanksgiving
The first one is DEFINITELY NOT a bolete! It has gills on the underside whereas boletes have pores. (It kinda looks like a sponge) and usually a yellowish or whitish color. Though I can't be sure from the picture, it looks like a Russula from here. (don't eat it) The second one is hard to see the underside well. It almost looks like a tooth mushroom of some kind. I guess those could be pores, but I can't tell.Though the top looks familiar it's probably not a bolete either. Don't eat them just to make sure. Be careful, but keep on shroomin'.......!
Hey Lisa, here's some examples of boletes so you can see the underside. Hope it helps! Happy Shroomin'....
I picked a few and this is a picture of their underbelly. When I picked them they were a golden/green color but they are turning browner now. I will not eat them, I’m just hunting them at this point and only eating mushrooms from the grocery store
Those are definitely from the right family group; They look a lot like Slippery Jacks that I get out here in CA. (which is actually a Suillus luteus mushroom) Just peel off the skin on the cap and they are a good edible; The last photo tells me they are an older outcropping; the underside should be yellow when young and the holes in the stem show signs of bugs. I think they beat you to them! Cool find though! Here are some photos; as you can see they vary in cap color but the pores underneath is what really nails it. Happy Shroomin'...
boletes.wpamushroomclub.org I use this website to help identify boletes. It also has a tab you can choose for your section of the country to help Identify boletes in your area.
Thank you for the information. I went to Nevada city CA this weekend and participated in the Yuba watershed Fungus Foray. Were either of you there by chance? We all found a lot of really great mushrooms, nothing very edible though. It seems like we had missed the Bolette and chanterelle season. Were any of you there by chance? Thank you for your input Lisa
No. I'm from Texas but I look at most forums from other states to help answer peoples questions. Seems when Morel season is out, most people do not look at this forum until the season get about 2 months out form beginning again. I love hunting mushrooms of all types with my kids so I try to stay active on this forum to help others when they ask questions.
Actually some of us hunt (or want to) all year but unfortunately California doesn't always get much rain, and of course that's a main ingredient for mushrooms! I just gathered some Meadow Mushrooms (Agaricus campestris) and made a great Cream of Mushroom soup from scratch. There are a lot of Honey Mushrooms (Armillaria mellea) right now below about 2000 ft. but not much else. The Matsutake grows in the mountains in Nov. & Dec. but I didn't get a chance to hunt them this year.
No Lisa, I didn't get down there this time. It's about 2 1/2 hours from Shasta Lake. I think you are right about missing the boletes but I'm not sure if they get Chantrelles in that area. I've been looking for boletes up here but they were pretty scarce this year. We have been getting some rain lately but too late for them I'm afraid. I'm still looking for Blewits though (one of my favorites!) Good Luck lisa and Happy Shrooming.......
