Mushrooms
Living on the edge of a rainforest has various advantages, one of them being an abundance of weird and wonderful fungi. Guests are welcome to explore our forest and search for some hidden treasures of their own.
If you want to time your stay at Bluff Hollow with forays for wild mushrooms, here's a rough idea of the peak seasons for these beauties:
Pleurotus ostreatus
Oyster mushroom
Late May/Early June
These appear in amazing abundance, and some of our oyster trees are just steps from the cottage door.
Sparassis crispa
Cauliflower mushroom
Mid- to late September
We've only ever found two cauliflower mushrooms, but obviously they do live in these parts - and this one was delicious!
Cantharellus formosus
Pacific Golden Chanterelle
September through November
These lovely edibles start appearing in early fall and continue until the first hard frost.
Armillaria mellea
Honey mushroom
Early October
These grow in huge clusters, steps from the cottage door and throughout the forest behind.
Boletus edulis
King bolete
Late October/early November
These beauties are few and far between, making it all the more special when you find one.
Lactarius deliciosus
Delicious milk cap
Late October/early November
These grow in abundance on the rocky hills around Pender Harbour.
Hypomyces lactifluorum
Lobster mushroom
Mid-September through October
These bright orange "lobsters" are unmistakable (the coin in the image indicates their size); Ann uses the orange parings for her dyebath before the rest goes into the cookpot.
Canthrellus subalbidus
White chanterelle
Late October/early November
We haven't found too many of these in the forest, but it's certainly a joy when we do!
Not pictured are the winter chanterelles (Cantharellus infundibuliformis), which appear through November until the first hard frost or snowfall, and the winter oysters (Panellus serotinus), which take us through spring.
Ann's twin passions for mushrooms and fibre have merged into a new interest: dyeing fibre with mushrooms. She was fortunate enough to attend, in January of 2008, the Thirteenth International Fungi & Fibre Symposium in Mendocino, California, where she met many wonderful people and learned much about creating beautiful things with mushrooms.
For a detailed discussion of the mushrooms she's used for dyeing and papermaking, along with images of the results, go to her blog.