# Anyone seeing mushrooms in southern Utah?



## naturalist (Aug 20, 2011)

August is usually the best time to collect edible mushrooms in Utah. However, the northern 2/3 of the state has been so dry this year that very few are being found. The mountains in the southern part of the state however have been getting rain the last few weeks and I'm wondering if anyone has been seeing mushrooms in the Boulder, Tushar, or La Sal ranges (not specific locations but just the mountain ranges). Thanks for any info.


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## sawsman (Sep 13, 2007)

Yes. Saw a bunch on Thousand Lakes over the last 3 days. Big and heady. Just wasn't sure if they were edible, so I let them be..


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## bowgy (Oct 10, 2007)

These are popping up all over my cabin driveway by Duck Creek. I have no idea what they are.


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## naturalist (Aug 20, 2011)

Thank you sawsman and bowgy for those reports. The mushrooms in the white cluster are shaggy manes and are good edibles (after being sauteed - don't eat uncooked ones). The brown cup shaped ones should not be consumed.


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## johnnycake (Jul 19, 2011)

I've been cleaning up on king boletes, hedgehogs, and hericium the past month... But the only ones I've ever find in Utah were giant puffballs on the La Sals.


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## Kingfisher (Jul 25, 2008)

Bowguy - if you plan on eating the shaggy mane's (or inky cap, lawyers wig) shrooms in your picture, do it soon, these are a form of autodigesting mushrooms - that is to say they will very soon decompose to a black nasty slimy mess - hence the name inky cap. right now would be the best opportunity to eat those. pick. clean (they often trap sand and soil in their cap) slice and sautee in butter with a little salt and pepper. with these, I prefer the stems over the caps. they are very easy to over cook to a sodden unpalatable mess. the stems hold up better to cooking. if the caps are black underneath, pitch the cap, cook the stem. if the caps are still a light purplish brown color, cook gently and enjoy.

the other one you have is hard to tell cause I have not scale reference, could be bears ear or could be a cup/birds nest fungi. neither is good.


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## bowgy (Oct 10, 2007)

Kingfisher said:


> Bowguy - if you plan on eating the shaggy mane's (or inky cap, lawyers wig) shrooms in your picture, do it soon, these are a form of autodigesting mushrooms - that is to say they will very soon decompose to a black nasty slimy mess - hence the name inky cap. right now would be the best opportunity to eat those. pick. clean (they often trap sand and soil in their cap) slice and sautee in butter with a little salt and pepper. with these, I prefer the stems over the caps. they are very easy to over cook to a sodden unpalatable mess. the stems hold up better to cooking. if the caps are black underneath, pitch the cap, cook the stem. if the caps are still a light purplish brown color, cook gently and enjoy.
> 
> the other one you have is hard to tell cause I have not scale reference, could be bears ear or could be a cup/birds nest fungi. neither is good.


Those white ones pop up every time that it rains, the weird rubbery looking one is about 2 inches across and grows under the deck where wood is lying on the ground. The white ones are about 1 to 1.5 inch diameter and 2 to 6 inches tall.


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## Kingfisher (Jul 25, 2008)

that pretty well confirms the first as shaggy mane. and the second as bear ear. cup fungi are typically much smaller.


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