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The great number of Dryad's Saddles around. Fresh oysters .  Some of these ended up in my frying pan. All of this indicates the end of Morel season - perfect timing for pickling ramps. The patches are withering away, the bulbs are big and succulent, preparing to wait for the next year cycle. This time around I do not dig clumps or use any tools except my fingers. The best technique is to stick your finger beside the plant, feel for the bulb and try to push it to the side. That usually brakes connection with root system and free the bulb. All the parts above ground are discarded. [caption id="attachment_1607" align="alignnone" width="3264"] The patch[/caption] [caption id="attachment_1608" align="alignnone" width="3264"] Ramp bulbs[/caption] The recipe   I use. Works Great

At the end of May we finally got several days with temperatures getting over 20°C.  Morel  season is winding down and some other mushrooms start to show.  The regular sight is Dryad's Saddle and usually some Ink Caps. At this time Oysters come in small bunches. The leaf canopy is fully established and around Great Lakes humidity starts to be annoying.  Soon it will be time to harvest Ramps for pickling. The waterfalls around Hamilton are full of water and quite beautiful. [caption id="attachment_1501" align="alignnone" width="3264"] Sherman Falls[/caption] Mayapple is in full bloom. Always amazes me how well is wildlife adapted and blends in.

LBM is widely accepted acronym for the Little Brown Mushroom. For me it represents any small mushroom  that is hard to safely identify or too small to bother and pick. I include in this group all small mushrooms, regardless of shape and color. As usual, there are several exceptions to this rule: Grayling (Chantharellula umbonata) Some Black Trumpets(Craterellus cornucopiades) Cinnabar Chanterelle (Chantharellus cinnabarius) Although it is very hard to collect any quantity that will provide decent meal, the listed ones are well worth it. Since small mushrooms frequently tend to grow in great numbers and clusters, they are sometimes a beautiful sight to see.  However, avoiding them will ensure that Deadly Galerina ( Galerina autumnalis ) does not end up on your plate.  On the other hand these mushrooms are probably the most photogenic group and most spectacular photos of mushrooms you can find around very probably contain members of this group. [Best_Wordpress_Gallery id="2

Temperatures dipped back to near zero over several nights.I tried  foraging in North York Regional forest with zero result. The consolation price for the weekend of May 14th were fiddleheads. There is some controversial info on the web about fiddleheads. Some sources have a warning about carcinogenic compounds found in several species of fern.The fact is they are still  sold in grocery shops in Ontario. I limit my foraging to Ostrich Fern . It is easily recognized by 3 characteristics: Dark green, almost bluish in color Paper like membrane (visible on picture bellow) Presence of characteristic spore bearing fronds Anyway, I follow recommendation of Government of Canada and cook my fiddleheads thoroughly, just in case. The fiddlheads season is very short. The best way to preserve is to blanch(cook in boiling water 2 minutes, shock with cold water to stop cooking), dry and put in freezer bags). Fiddleheads have a great, buttery taste and can be eaten as side dish or cooked veg

When my Morel hunt fails miserably one of the consolation prices is  Garlic Mustard . This is an invasive species brought to North America to be used as edible herb, but escaped to the wild and is now creating quite a problem for native species. It is listed as  Ontario Invading Plant and some info about ways to help can be found  here. . A quick Google search will show that it presents a serious problem in many northern US states and southern Canadian provinces. It is propagating at astounding rate and every year it is obviously spreading. My recommendation is to help by destroying the plant whenever you can by pulling the whole plant out of the soil, but the alternative way is just to eat it. It is very good edible and especially delicious at this time of the year when it is not yet overly pungent and garlicky. The best is to collect stalks with flowers before the flowers open. Use same technique used to prepare asparagus. Bend the stalk and let it break. The upper part is good to c

Encouraged by the finds couple of days ago I visited one of my best spots for Morels .  There was no trace of any mushrooms yet. The only thing indicating something is going on are several Dryad's Saddles in very early stage of growth. The Trillium is everywhere, showing great variations in color. I did find many small patches of Ramps. All of them were too small to harvest.   I will try again on Weekend.

  May 3rd, 2016 Finally, found some Morels . Still pretty small ( all shown specimens are about 1 inch) and not in great numbers, but it is the start. Some sources claim that to find Morels Trillium must be present. I did find some around. [caption id="attachment_1138" align="alignnone" width="1381"] Morels[/caption] [caption id="attachment_1139" align="alignnone" width="1721"] Small, too early to harvest[/caption] [caption id="attachment_1144" align="alignnone" width="3264"] Trillium[/caption] The weather forecast promises mid teens for the Weekend. It will be perfect to check my usual spots. [caption id="attachment_1158" align="alignnone" width="1775"] Morel[/caption]   [caption id="attachment_1159" align="alignnone" width="1752"] Very young group[/caption]