sculpture, acrylic paint
by "Wildman"
This is a small, beige, roundish to pear-shaped puffball 5/8 to 1-3/4 inches across that develops a pore on top when mature, through which the spores escape.
Note the stringy mycelia comprising the fungus' body.
photo by "Wildman"
photo by "Wildman"
Later it becomes yellow-green, and finally dark olive brown inside.
Note the hole at each mushroom's tip, for expelling spores.
photo by "Wildman"
Under the mushroom's base, the fungus looks like white string.
The gem-studded puffball, also a choice edible, resembles this mushroom, but the former is covered with tiny spines and grows on the ground.
Poisonous earthballs (Scleroderma) begin white inside, but they soon turn black, and they're always hard, whereas this puffball is always soft.
Always cut open small puffballs to make sure there are no gills or stem inside, indicating possibly deadly amanitas. However, amanitas grow on the ground. This puffball always grow on dead wood.
Look for pear-shaped puffballs on logs and stumps (or emerging from buried portions of stumps), where they may grow in great numbers.
photo by "Wildman"
Although this mushroom may appear as early as midsummer, it's more usual from mid- to late fall. They can come up year after year in the same place, until the fungus has used up all the nutrients it needs in the dead wood.
This mushroom is a choice edible species. Slice the puffball, sauté it, steam it, or simmer it in soups, like other mushrooms. It has an especially rich taste that you can't drown out with other ingredients. Because of this, you can use the mushroom sparingly and it will still flavor a recipe effectively. It's great for flavoring grains or beans, for example. And it dehydrates well.
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