Monday, July 30, 2012

Hen or Chicken of the Woods - either way, a great find in NYC!

Earlier today a friend called to tell me about a mushroom sighting at Peter Cooper Village. There's something large at the base of that tree! I can see it from a distance.

A closer inspection shows it to be a Chicken of the Woods (Laetiporus sulfureus) mushroom-- a rare find at Peter Cooper Village. Maybe we have that awful smelling peat moss to thank! No flowers, but a nice mushroom.


Although it may have been fresh and whole when my friend found it earlier today, it now looks seriously nibbled on. The Chicken of the Woods is actually a great delicacy, one of the most delicious the wild mushrooms.











Update - August 12
There's also a Chicken of the Woods mushroom growing in Spunky's tree! You can see it just below her hole.




2 comments:

  1. that looks like a hen of the woods (maitake) not a chicken of the woods

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  2. You're right. Guess it was a case of wishful thinking on my part. The "hen of the woods" mushrooms that I've found in the past tended to be dark gray in color, and this mushroom was on the light side (especially the one in Spunky's tree). But I have to admit that it didn't have that yellow-salmon hue of a true chicken! Guess I was just fooling myself that it was a chicken with a dingy gray New York City tinge to it :)

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