Friday, June 19, 2009

Black Trumpets - Heralds of Summer

Work found me in Springfield yesterday morning and on the drive home I decided to take a short walk out at Ha Ha Tonka to see if I could scare up chanterelles of any kind.

There were a few common yellow, cinnabars, even some yellow footed. Picked about a pound of all these mixed colors. Then I hit the black trumpet patches, which were up in full force. I picked my share of these and in an hour I was on my way with enough to last me the rest of the week. The black trumpets I picked were Craterellus conrnucopioides. Check out MushroomExpert.com for a full description.

They are also up around Columbia. Jon found a different type craterellus foetidus in Rock Bridge State Park this week. You can tell the difference becuase the standard black trumpet in the first photo had a smooth underside. C. foetidus on the other hand, has wrinkles like a common chanterelles, though they are much more shallow.



You can find a good description of them as well on MushroomExpert; however, at least in Mid-MO you can ignore Kuo's comment about C cornucopiodes not growing in tight clusters. Many I found yesterday were fields of clusters of at least 4-5 mushrooms, though usually, like Kuo says, they are found in two's and three's. When you find a patch stop, look, and step very carefully, more than likely they'll have you surrounded.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

I found black trumpets for the first time this year. They were definitiely craterellus conrnucopioides. The shallow species you pictured is very interesting--I hope I find dome. I'm finding quite a lot of varieties of summer mushrooms this year. By the way, I like your title for this post. --STLMorelsChants&Hens

Julianna Schroeder said...

Hi, I just stumbled upon your blog in just about the same way I usually stumble upon morels--with surprise and great joy! I'll have to keep track of the upcoming forays, classes, and other events you've mentioned, as I'm in Central Mo. too and love mushroom hunting--whether for edibles or just to enjoy their beauty.

ahistory said...

Good to hear of St. Louis trumpets. If you can spot them you can find any mushroom.

And welcome Julie, I'm always happy to find another MId-MO mushroomer. You'll have to post a few of your own finds or better yet send me some photos and I'll put them up for all to see.

ahistory said...

Oh and if anyone is near Camdenton this weekend, go to Ha Ha Tonka, turn at the post office and follow the dirt road until you find the special use camping area. It is a good mushroomy time.

Julianna Schroeder said...

Well, my blog covers a lot of stuff--probably too much, actually--but I do occasionally post about mushrooms. Here are a few links:

http://opulentopossum.blogspot.com/2009/04/whoop-whoop-and-woohoo.html

http://opulentopossum.blogspot.com/2009/04/more-about-morels.html

Soon I'll be posting some pictures of shaggy manes we saw on the lawn of the Missouri State Capitol. Lawyer's wigs. (Dunce caps?) Ha ha. (Political humor.)

ahistory said...

Nice one, I know the capital well from my real job, a more fitting mushroom reference you could not find. Can't wait to see the pictures.

Anonymous said...

Great find of the black trumpets.. they still seem to be sparse over here in SW IL although the Chanterelles in general are showing better numbers than I've seen in a few years!

Vicki said...

just came back from a mushroom hunt, we find the black trumpets to be very sparse this year, whereas they have always been plentiful and big in this spot. We find them on a hillside in large rings in Central Mo midway between JC and Lake of the Ozarks, our fifth year in this spot near our house on our land. I like your blog a lot, i actually found it from Julie's food blog.

Michele said...

Hi all! I just found some Craterellus Foetidus today in Rock County Wi. This is my 2nd year hunting and finding trumpets. I have a 2 part question please, how long is the growth rate for trumpets? Meaning do they grow within 10 days (weather permitting), or is it just days and then they die off? Also will this sane species flush throughout the summer here after rains? Or is this fragrant type an early trumpet? I have pics but don’t know how or if I can load them here. Thank you!