Measuring up the fall mushrooms

Paul Strand’s big hen of the woods mushroom. (Provided)

Paul Strand found this hen of the woods mushroom on private property in an undisclosed location.

“That’s a wrap,” he quipped.

He weighed it at 6.1 pounds.

That fits the description in foragerchef.com by Alan Bergo of hen of the woods: “These are the king of Fall mushrooms in the Midwest, at least in size.”

Paul Strand weighing his hen of the woods mushroom. (Provided)

I’m curious what the continued dry weather and several days of freezing or near-freezing temperatures will do to foraging for fall mushrooms, though the weekend forecast is for temperatures in the 70s.

Mushroom of the Week, the celebration of mushrooms and their stories (the stories matter) around Chicago outdoors, runs sporadically, generally in the fall, in the paper Sun-Times. The online posting here at chicago.suntimes.com/outdoors goes up at varied days of the week, depending on what is going on in the wide world of the outdoors.

To make submissions, email (BowmanOutside@gmail.com) or contact me on Facebook (Dale Bowman), Twitter (@BowmanOutside) or Instagram (@BowmanOutside).