M.K. Dorje Sr.

Judith, I am in complete agreement with Eric- go for it while the chips are still fresh. However,  I might add that you might also want to put some fresh chips and a bit of your spawn in a big plastic bag, then put the bag in a closet or place where the temperature will stay around 70 F, spraying it with water occasionally to keep it moist. (You could also add some hardwood sawdust to the mix too, since Wine Caps seem to like a mix of 50/50 hardwood chips/sawdust, although they can do well with just chips.) That way, you'll another Wine Cap project going in case the outdoor project doesn't do well. I always try to inoculate two different substrates or kinds of logs when I buy mushroom spawn and see which project does best. The bag can be used to inoculate another chip bed in the spring once the weather warms up.

Good luck and please keep us posted!

Judith Browning wrote:

M.K. Dorje Sr. wrote:That last one is definitely some kind of Amanita, probably in the Lepidella subgroup that includes several deadly species. Almost very year inexperienced people mistake Amanita mushrooms for edibles like the White Matsutake with fatal results. Like my mycology teacher used to say- "When in doubt, throw it out."

that's what I thought....I need to label the photo.
Without a definite ID what would you suggest?
Usually I try to take a gill photo but for this one I didn:t want my phone anywhere close to it!
If I'm at all in doubt I don't touch them.

Me too! There are several species of Amanita in the Lepidella subgroup in the southeastern US that are difficult to ID down to species without a microscope. In Oregon, there's one called Smith's Amanita that can look similar to the White Matsutake and sometimes grows right next to them- maybe that confusion is causing the poisonings in California. Anyway, I always avoid any mushroom with a cup or bulb at the base, white gills and a white spore print.

Judith, I also enjoy all these photos from your field trips. In the 1990s I  wanted to travel to the swamps in Arkansas and see an Ivory-Billed Woodpecker- the holy grail of American bird watching.

That last one is definitely some kind of Amanita, probably in the Lepidella subgroup that includes several deadly species. Almost very year inexperienced people mistake Amanita mushrooms for edibles like the White Matsutake with fatal results. Like my mycology teacher used to say- "When in doubt, throw it out."

Anybody here grow Asian persimmons? I have no experience with these trees, but I'm thinking about starting some from cuttings this winter, and so I'd like to learn a bit more before I get started. I especially would like to hear from people with good  varieties for the Pacific Northwest.

Here are some Queen Boletes, a Yellow Chanterelle, and some Wine-cap Agaricus I found last month.

It's been an amazing fall for mushrooms in Oregon. Today I found the biggest Lion's Mane mushroom I've ever seen. It was about 20 feet up in an ancient Oregon white oak tree. I had to knock it down with a long stick. I got about 10 pounds and left several more pounds on the tree. Although the mushroom is too soggy for fresh eating, it will make some great medicinal tincture.

Here's an article about the oak apple gall wasp which is found in Portugal, it might be the species that's causing oak trees to die back in your country:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biorhiza_pallida

Hope all this info helps...

They could be oak galls, which are caused by wasps. Here's an article from wikipedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oak_apple

In Oregon, oak galls combined with grey squirrels are causing oak trees to die back. This article from Oregon State University explains it much better than I can:

https://extension.oregonstate.edu/ask-extension/featured/whats-causing-leaf-damage-oak-trees

Maybe there is something similar going on with the oak trees in your area, but I'm not sure. Apparently, most healthy oak trees will survive this problem.

I can't seem to find Blenril apricot anywhere, except a brief mention in my old (2000) Fruit, Berry and Nut Inventory book. The Virus-Free Fruit Tree Collection at Washington State University in Prosser, WA was listed as the only source for Blenril scion wood. They have a website, you might want to check it out.

https://www.cpcnorthwest.com/s/fruit-trees

My old Creswell cropping: