Western hemlock thrives in humid areas of the Pacific coast. It is commonly found in temperate rain forests, usually within 100 miles of the coast.
Size
This large conifer can grow up to 200 feet tall and 9 feet in diameter. It is also long-lived, with the oldest known hemlock coming in at 1200 years!
In addition to being well known for its gorgeous wood, hemlock is used for a variety of other purposes. Western hemlock tolerates shade and grows abundantly underneath mature trees, where it provides an important source of food for deer and elk. Older trees are prone to rot, which makes them excellent sources of cavities for birds.
Native Americans on the Pacific coast carved hemlock wood into spoons, combs, roasting spits, and other implements. Hemlock bark is rich in a substance useful for tanning hides.
Foods
Hemlock is also a source of different kinds of food. In addition to offering edible canbium (the spongy cork interior of the bark), a hemlock forest is the preferred place for chanterelles and other edible fungi to grow. The needles can also be chewed or made into tea.
There’s gold in those hills – that is golden mushrooms
Pacific Golden Chanterelles became the Oregon State mushroom in 1999. And no wonder, Oregon harvests over 500,000 pounds annually!
Chanterelles (Royalty free from Unsplash)
Chanterelles are one of the most popular wild edible mushrooms and tend to command a high price in both restaurants and specialty stores. Their rich, distinctive taste and aroma often puts them into the same gourmet fungi short list with truffles and morels.
Where do Pacific Goldens Grow?
Chanterelles grow in Pacific Northwest conifer forests that include western hemlock, Douglas-fir, and Sitka spruce (and live oaks in California). It forms a mycorrhizal mutually beneficial (symbiotic) relationship with these trees.
Pacific Gold Chanterelle is one of several chanterelle mushrooms. It is sometimes hard to tell one from another. The Pacific has a long, graceful funnel-shaped stem that tapers to the base. The wavy cap has tiny, dark scales on the pinkish orange-yellow surface. The false gills look like forked wrinkles with a pinkish hue. The scales and pinkish colors are sometimes absent in wet conditions. Look for a distinctive fruity apricot aroma.
Not the Same
Recent DNA work helped identify the differences between ‘Cantharellus cibarius’ (Golden Chanterelle), ‘Cantharellus formosus’ (Pacific Golden Chanterelle), and other related species. At one time all chanterelles in the Pacific Northwest were considered ‘cibarius.’ Turns out they are not. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chanterelle.
The cibarius for instance grow in clumps among the moss in coniferous forests. Some grow in grasslands, mountainous birch forests, or beech forests depending on the location and specific species. Cibarius are yellow or golden, funnel-shaped, and meaty. Gill-like ridges run down the stem under the cap and they may smell fruity, woody, or earthy. For more information on these findings see: The Wild Mushroom Expert (https:www.mushroomexpert.com/cantharellus_formosus.html).
Lookalikes
Mushrooms can be difficult to identify and several, like the cibarius and formosus, look very similar. There are other mushrooms that look like these including the false chanterelle which is darker almost orangeish with a dark center that grades out towards light edges. False chanterelle is not dangerous, but could upset your stomach. It also tastes bad.
Jack-o-lantern mushrooms are toxic and sometimes mistaken for chanterelles. The gills of a jack-o-lantern mushroom are much thinner, deeper, and more delicate than the smooth, blunt, and shallow gill-like ridges of a chanterelle.
Cooking
Fresh chanterelles are the best to cook with. They dry well, but can become a bit chewy when reconstituted. Chanterelles can be dried and ground to a flour or frozen for short amounts of time.
Cooking releases the complex flavors of a chanterelle, especially when cooking with wine and butter. There are several fabulous recipes around to experiment with (like in sauces, sautés, soups, etc.). Look for Chanterelles at local farmer’s markets, gourmet stores, and gift stores.
The key to enjoying mushrooms is making sure that you have the right one. Some are poisonous (see chart at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mushroom_poisoning). Most poisonous mushrooms will cause vomiting and diarrhea with no long-term damage. Other mushrooms can be deadly and cause damage to kidneys and liver. Do your research, learn how to safely identify your target, and similar mushroom species.
You might not think of a lowly lichen as an engineer. Most people might laugh at the idea. A few though would know their story.
Frog Pelt Royalty free images from https://www.sciencesource.com)
Home
Lichens are fairly common on the moist Pacific Northwest central coast. One can find them growing on mossy rocks, soil, and dead trees in moist areas typically under the 2,200-foot elevation.
If we were to travel north into Canada, we could find areas hosting nearly 30 different lichen species. We could even find some in northern California.
Would we see them?
Peltigera lichens are found on all continents. There are several different types of lichens that includes over 580 species of macrolichens and over 1,400 species of microlichens. Our region is particularly rich in lichens.
Easy to Overlook
Frog Pelt or Dog Lichen is commonly found in the Pacific Northwest. This small lichen is easy to identify.
Frog pelt creates relatively large rubbery olive green-gray lobes. The lobs are typically between .04 and .9 inches wide and nearly flush to the ground.
What makes them special?
Lichens are ecologically important as food and shelter for wildlife, large and small, and indigenous Americans
Lichens are fairly intolerant of environmental change and are very sensitive to changes in air quality, moisture, and drainage. They won’t thrive in dirty air.
Nitrogen
All lichens share a common ancestry and all Peltigera associate with nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria Nostoc. This association allows them to pull nitrogen from the atmosphere.
Nitrogen is required for healthy plant growth. It is often in short supply in forests. In more arid lands, lichens help stabilize soil and sand.
Other Uses
Peltigera lichen have been used medically. This includes: Treating wounds, urinary disorders, thrush, cough remedies, tuberculosis, antioxidant, and rabies.
Dog lichen is not typically a mammal food source.
An Engineer?
Lichens are a hard working combination of fungus and algae. They have evolved from a simple scavenging fungus to a lichen by cultivating a ‘symbiotic’ (or mutually beneficial) relationship with algea.
Algea creates the food. The fungus provides the protection and support structure. This organism can live several centuries.
Keep in mind, this sometimes disheveled-looking plant has no roots, stem, flowers, or leaves. It depends on slender holdfasts to stay in place and bears raised orange-ish fruiting bodies along the lobe margins. Simple, yes. Simply amazing. Oh YES.
REFERECES: –Common Macrolichens of the Pacific Northwest, Oregon State University (https://lichens.twinferntech.net/pnw/index.shtml) –US Dept. of Agriculture, NRCS (https://plants.usda.gov/growth_habits_def.html) –Wikipedia, Peltigera (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peltigera –USDI, Bureau of Land Management, Survey and Manage (https://www.blm.gov/or/plans/surveyandmanage/files/sfs-li-peltigera-pacifica-2007-12.pdf) –The New Garden Encyclopedia, Wise & Company –Royalty free images from https://www.sciencesource.com/p/14813480/BW9919.html
