Jump to content
The Corroboree
Zen Peddler

First subs of 2012 season

Recommended Posts

i guess that is silly advice considering eating the wrong one can be fatal. My experience is very limited, forgive me for the silly comment.

Edited by Arsea

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

the most important thing with identifying a sub is the feel of it. You cant learn that from a book or the internet. Pm any of the experienced guys from your area and see if they will take you out.

I have often wondered about hunting at night with a blacklight, im sure a psylo mushroom would fluoresce. Although i never tried it

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

i've been out wandering these past 3 days.

day one was in a national park near melbournes outer north. i found lots of kangaroos, but nut much shrooms. i spent most of my time stopping by tree's, leaf litter and fallen logs. the mushies i did find had what could be described as having a volcano on top, and when prodding the side of the head part, red dust would puff out the top. i got lost for about an 30 minutes by straying too far off the path, but had my bearings, so wasnt all that worried. upon leaving i learned that i had entered a driveway through an open gate that normally would have been closed to the public. now that it was closed, i had to wait about an hour for a kind ranger to come and release me after phoning the parks hotline.

day two i went wandering through a park i had ventured to at the end of last year. i should clarify that my earlier post is misleading. i havent ever found or been able to identify a psycho-active fungus. i had originally gone to this park around mid winter i think, and found lots of different mushrooms which i had no chance of identifying due to my low experience level. i did, however, take a few pics back then, but never posted them. these are the shots a took:

img0015qj.jpg

img0014dq.jpg

img0009tr.jpg

img0010jg.jpg

img0016umt.jpg

img0021wtb.jpg

this year(at the same location) all i found was the occasional single large brown/yellow mushroom growing directly from the soil. the stem was not visable, just the top of the head. like so:

img0016hl.jpg

i decided to go for a night walk last night. there was one large fallen log with what i thought was fungi growing directly from the side of the log. there was 4 or 5 that looked like flat headed mushroom, with the stem cut off, and cut in half down the middle. they were growing on the log kind of like a oyster attaches itself to rocks.

i also found a large wolf spider and a frog. they were close enough together that that i suspected they may be freinds.

what i've learned: so far there either isnt much fungusing going on around here, or my eyes arent trained well enough. i need better boots, to remember my camera, and that spiders and frogs can be friends :)

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

i've been out wandering these past 3 days.

i decided to go for a night walk last night. there was one large fallen log with what i thought was fungi growing directly from the side of the log. there was 4 or 5 that looked like flat headed mushroom, with the stem cut off, and cut in half down the middle. they were growing on the log kind of like a oyster attaches itself to rocks.

i also found a large wolf spider and a frog. they were close enough together that that i suspected they may be freinds.

 

Lovely story. The shrooms know you aren't quite ready yet, but clearly appreciate your wanderings. I am sure that you will meet someone who will show you the way of the mushroom, and then their secrets will be revealed. In the meantime, your journey has already begun with your explorations of the wilderness, discovering, seeing what is about.

Your story is very shamanic, I love it.

  • Like 3

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Love the commitment mooms!!

When you do eventually find i'm sure it will be all that more rewarding.

The way the weather is in melbs at the moment though , it's looking like it's going a couple of weeks before we get the first decent sized flushes.

Good luck with it ,i'm sure you'll find plenty!!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Does anyone know of any particularly good online sources or descriptions to read about the specific geographic environments subs like in NSW? I've done quite a few fungus hunting hikes after rains over the year and many shroomies are in wild abundance.. I've got lots of photos of all the finds - but last year around sydney I didn't see any actives at all. I still find the idea of trying to hunt for actives really daunting - looking at many pictures and descriptions online leads me to think I could identify subs but I still feel like I'm very much in the dark as regards selecting potential areas to go and look..

I've noticed that details like the inclination of the land, the direction slopes face and the specific type of leaf cover can all apparently be critical as you see some species only flourish in quite specific conditons.

Is trawling the forums for hunt accounts still the best way to get an idea of what kind of places to look? I find books are often europe/US-centric in their descriptions

Edited by MagicalMedic

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Does anyone know of any particularly good online sources or descriptions to read about the specific geographic environments subs like in NSW? I've done quite a few fungus hunting hikes after rains over the year and many shroomies are in wild abundance.. I've got lots of photos of all the finds - but last year around sydney I didn't see any actives at all. I still find the idea of trying to hunt for actives really daunting - looking at many pictures and descriptions online leads me to think I could identify subs but I still feel like I'm very much in the dark as regards selecting potential areas to go and look..

I've noticed that details like the inclination of the land, the direction slopes face and the specific type of leaf cover can all apparently be critical as you see some species only flourish in quite specific conditons.

Is trawling the forums for hunt accounts still the best way to get an idea of what kind of places to look? I find books are often europe/US-centric in their descriptions

 

go to pine plantations dude you cant go wrong there if you have a decent look around, dont worry about the hills and slopes its just luck in the fields i find, you get cases where youl pull up and have a look in one field and theres absolutely nothing then look across the road in that field and its got patch after patch,

with looking for them outside of pine fields its pretty hard, i know a patch near my house which fruits 2 to 3 mushies every time it rains thats not in pine, and your still alittle early the regular season around sydney is about may to june when it gets cold and ends as soon as it gets icy on the ground

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

the most important thing with identifying a sub is the feel of it.

 

I'll second that and add another spice in to the mix : the smell. In all my years (~10) of hunting around the world I've met loads of people who, after the obvious visual/touch identification then rely on smell for the final confirmation, myself included.

If you've eaten a decent dose of fresh subs, that smell will never leave you (!) and be a constant hunting companion.

Still... "if in doubt, throw it out" is a good mantra to repeat to yourself when starting out. Once you've got a good season or two under your belt you will wonder why it was ever difficult and start finding them all over the freakin' place. I usually find them in pine plantations / forest floor / field / landscaped areas etc. Pay attention to the trees they like to grow near too and other indicative species such as Stropharia Aurantica for those urban hunters.

  • Like 2

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Yeh lucky we only PHOTOGRAPH magics, ay.

There's still so much learning within the law, that one can accomplish..

before u know it,

they'll invite u to walk down strange paths..

turn your head at the weirdest moments..

call u in the nighttime.. they'll strike ur nose, ur old brain, deep within ur bones they'll speak..

And then there are patchs which will only fruit for u..and that others will never find..

I can't count the amount of hunters proclaiming failure, only to find by happesntance, they hand't been in the wrong spots..

they'd just been days, hours, or minutes on the wrong side of the veil.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

First post yeww! heading to queensland in july was wondering if there are any actives around?

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

as far as i know there won't be any actives in Queensland at the moment or in July. from what i've heard you'll have to wait till the summer months...

correct me if i'm wrong but the woodloving variety don't fruit that far north because it doesn't get cold enough. july is also a bit late for woodlovers elsewhere in my experience, it's usually too cold and frosty by then. but i'm only speaking from my experience in NSW.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

aww spewin, well at least the surfboard will come in handy. cheers man

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Hey guys this is my first ever post here :) my girlfriend and I went camping out in the forest over the wknd and had some luck. I've been looking for this mushroom for a while, but this is the first time i've found it in the wild so I thought it'd be worthwhile posting them up here just to double check. You can probably tell from the photo most of the subs we found were pretty dried out and unhealthy looking. Hopefully the rain we're having at the moment really gets the season going.

9lk3g8.jpgo5pyrd.jpg

Edited by Asubmarine
  • Like 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

They make just a good photo's in the ground, yes.

That'd be a whole lotta spore print right they-are..

  • Like 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

You seem to have pulled up a bit of the myc. with 'em, ASubmarine. Pinch 'em off.

Beyond that, grats :)

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I'll second that and add another spice in to the mix : the smell. In all my years (~10) of hunting around the world I've met loads of people who, after the obvious visual/touch identification then rely on smell for the final confirmation, myself included.

If you've eaten a decent dose of fresh subs, that smell will never leave you (!) and be a constant hunting companion.

 

I agree on the smell of subs, for sure.

:)

Its great to see they are becoming active again.....(lol, active !, i mean popping their heads up). Last season seems so long ago.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
You seem to have pulled up a bit of the myc. with 'em, ASubmarine. Pinch 'em off. Beyond that, grats :)

I realise that pulling mushrooms straight out of the ground is usually considered bad picking etiquette. I also realise that I collected a few pins that I probably should have let be. This being my first time finding them I was pretty excited and might have got a bit carrried away haha. I'll try to be more thoughtful in future times :)

Edited by Asubmarine

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

i've been out wandering these past 3 days.

day one was in a national park near melbournes outer north. i found lots of kangaroos, but nut much shrooms. i spent most of my time stopping by tree's, leaf litter and fallen logs. the mushies i did find had what could be described as having a volcano on top, and when prodding the side of the head part, red dust would puff out the top. i got lost for about an 30 minutes by straying too far off the path, but had my bearings, so wasnt all that worried. upon leaving i learned that i had entered a driveway through an open gate that normally would have been closed to the public. now that it was closed, i had to wait about an hour for a kind ranger to come and release me after phoning the parks hotline.

day two i went wandering through a park i had ventured to at the end of last year. i should clarify that my earlier post is misleading. i havent ever found or been able to identify a psycho-active fungus. i had originally gone to this park around mid winter i think, and found lots of different mushrooms which i had no chance of identifying due to my low experience level. i did, however, take a few pics back then, but never posted them. these are the shots a took:

this year(at the same location) all i found was the occasional single large brown/yellow mushroom growing directly from the soil. the stem was not visable, just the top of the head. like so:

i decided to go for a night walk last night. there was one large fallen log with what i thought was fungi growing directly from the side of the log. there was 4 or 5 that looked like flat headed mushroom, with the stem cut off, and cut in half down the middle. they were growing on the log kind of like a oyster attaches itself to rocks.

i also found a large wolf spider and a frog. they were close enough together that that i suspected they may be freinds.

what i've learned: so far there either isnt much fungusing going on around here, or my eyes arent trained well enough. i need better boots, to remember my camera, and that spiders and frogs can be friends :)

 

The best place to hunt for shrooms in Victoria is in the suburbs on wood chip gardens. You can get lucky hunting in state and national parks, but there much harder to find and usually only grow solitarily or in pairs, compared to suburban wood chip gardens where you can commonly find large patches of subs.

To identify, squeeze the shroom in your hand, then wait a few minutes. If the mushroom bruises an unmistakeable bright ink blue colour, it’s a sub, but if it doesn’t bruise a clear blue colour, then it’s not the right one. Simple, there’s not really much chance of picking the wrong species if you just use your common sense. They are also absolutely everywhere in the suburbs of Melbourne mostly during june to july, but can be found earlier or later if the weather is averaging below 15 degrees.

Anyway, good luck with it. The only single thing I miss about Melbourne is the abundant flush of psilocybe mushrooms in winter.

Peace

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Went for a bit of a hunt around the northern suburbs of Sydney today, since we have had all this rain I thought it might be good to check out a few places. Everything was pretty sodden and only found a few mushrooms, not what I was looking for, but good to see a few about. I don't think it's nearly cold enough in that area, but wanted to check out certain areas.

Found a nice sheltered creek and reserve with a fair few Eucalyptus spp., Angophora costata, Syncarpia glomulifera mainly, fair bit of privet and creeping christian as well though, which kind of annoyed me (well a lot actually, I used to be a bush regenerator). Quite a bit of decaying wood matter and fallen old logs and the like. Found what to my mind looked like an interesting spot, it was South facing, fairly cleared, but the ground was littered pretty heavily with decaying branches, logs and twigs/sticks with decaying leaves. Very shady. A bit higher than the creek, maybe 15 meters away, give or take. Does this sound like a likely spot? A few other spots looked good around the base of large Eucs and also some very large old dead stumps. Keep having these dreams (never had them before) and it's like I am being called. Just wouldn't mind a bit of help with the habitat and such. Or if anyone was keen to go on a walk and teach me some things that would be great.

Edited by tonic

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

The best place to hunt for shrooms in Victoria is in the suburbs on wood chip gardens.

 

As long as our nice Municipal Council has placed wood chips on the roundabouts or along the medium strip, you can find subs there. It just looks a bit odd being in the center of a highway, bending down, taking photos of mushrooms. Also parks / public areas, that have wood chips. The subs are there in plain view, ready to be photographed.

:)

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

hey tonic. I used to trek around the northern suburbs a bit, finding places pretty similar to what you described. sadly never found any subs on the north side, even though i knew exactly what to look for and knew when they were fruiting (they were fruiting in other parts of sydney) and all of the places i was checking seemed perfect for huuge flushes. i checked back on a whole bunch of spots weekly but never found any... i did leave a shit load of mycellium and spores laying around in those places though....so who knows....

i sincerly hope that you are triumphant this season.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

For those of you close by state forest

It's definitely worth a drive. So many edibles, buckets of slippery jax & saffies,un-I'd species & SUBS.... You could almost lean out of your car & pick em up!! We only picked the edibles though.

Some areas better than others.

If you go be please be considerate of others &

take what you need & tap those spores...

Edited by altenate

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Tonic: So, so many subs on the north side of Sydney. Every year I find a new patch or two. I know of 4 serious patches within 5 minutes drive from my house. Still 6 weeks or so off, though.

(PS: I'm not tellin', so don't be askin'!)

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Thanks to those who responded so quickly.

That's what I was hoping and had heard something to that effect a while back, Marcel.

More what I was asking was if the spot I was looking in sounds decent/appropriate? Or should I be looking for something else? I always look in mulch beds too.

There is hectare upon hectare of wild bushland adjoining my land, which could quite possibly yield decent results, but it is close to sea level, well some of it. Never seen much action, but would look harder if I thought there might be something interesting lurking. It's very wild, untamed bush and pretty hard going, and lots of it, so it's a bit daunting really. No one really gets up there though, which could be good, or perhaps not.

Though it's tempting to ask haha, I know the etiquette. Though I don't suppose you'd like to go for a walk sometime?

Edited by tonic

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now

×