Car Park Truffle!
I've been fruitlessly swirling a digit around earthy holes for years, thanks to the 'Truffle Whisperer' himself - @launderjesper . Never have I unearthed a Truffle of my own volition.
Today I did.
In a high school car park.
It was a Red Truffle (Tuber rufum) and it smells of smoked almonds.
No, it's not edible. And no, I do not care that I cannot put it in my mouth.
If I could put it somewhere, I would put it in a frame and mount it on the downstairs toilet wall (if I had a downstairs toilet)
But a maggot crawled out and that would not be a popular living bathroom decoration, fictional wall or not.
If you want tips on finding your own diddy stink nuggets, check out Jesper's recent posts and be prepared to GET DOWN ON IT!
#carparktruffles#weirdointheschoolcarpark#tuberrufarum#diddystinknuggets
(I realise I once posted an April fool of me appearing to find the highly sought after delicious Summer truffle in a local Leisure centre car park).
Truth is stranger than fiction.
Found this beauty lounging on bramble in the overgrown polytunnel I'm in the process of clearing. Just showing the slightest glimpse of its vivid red underwing.
Scalet Tiger Moth (Callimorpha dominula). I can't bring myself to move it, so the bramble has got a reprieve for another day.
Here's a nice example of the Red Fold Truffle (Hydnotrya tulasnei) from a couple of days ago.
This one is a widespread but uncommon species, and this is the first I've encountered in Bucks. I've got a soft spot for the Hydnotrya, with their folded and chambered interiors, in some cases reminiscent of the closely-related cup fungi, the Peziza.
This one was found under an oak in Little Chalfont that had previously yielded no fewer than 4 other species of truffle!
A stunning example of Neoboletus xanthopus, fruiting under the drip zone of a huge, mature oak in nearby Little Chalfont.
Great to see, but there's not much else in the way of fungi fruiting above ground at the moment. Luckily for me the truffles are putting in a good show. The running tally is 9 different species over this last week. And it's only just June.
Really chuffed to find a decent collection of the rare Tuber maculatum yesterday. It's one I've had on the hitlist for a good while.
With conditions so dry recently, I absolutely wasn't expecting such a treat on my Saturday constitutional.
This little cracker was under a large-leaved non-native birch. Squirrels had done a good job of harvest, but they kindly left a good cluster of these in one of the holes.
The smell was mildly truffly, with a pleasant, truffly nutty taste. Not highly rated/expensive, but a cool find all the same.
Feeling a lot of love for the wild Peas today.
Clockwise for top left:
Meadow Vetchling (Lathyrus prarensus)
Goat's Rue (Galega officinalis)
Common Vetch (Lathyrus sativa)
Golden Melilot (Melilotus altissimus)
Red Clover (Trifolium pratense)
Common Birds-Foot Trefoil (Lotus corniculatus)
Grass Vetchling (Lathyrus nissolia)
A selection of truffles found over the last couple of days in Gerrards Cross, Bucks.
Broome's Slime Truffle (Melanogaster broomeanus)develops a slimy black interior and gives off a boozy, ripe pear aroma at maturity.
Broad-Spored Balsamia (Balsamia platyspora) is a finely warted species with large, broadly ellipsoid spores. This one was was kicking out a strong yeasty, truffly smell.
Balsamia vulgaris is very similar to the above but has narrower spores and is the rarer of the two. This one had a quite unpleasant, rotting-onion, kind of pong going on.
Another residential floral treat. This time, the Pyramidal Orchid (Anacamptis pyramidalis) from the overgrown garden of an old, derelict house on the most opulent of nearby roads.
Sadly, I think the plot has 'new development' written all over it, and this magical moment, with wildflowers retaking their rightful place in the order-of-things, will be short-lived.
First Summer Truffles (Tuber aestivum) of the year for me. These lot came from large dig holes under a mature oak in a friends garden, of all places. South Bucks is proving superb "residential truffle" terrain.
As usual at this time of year, even though they're fair game for a foraging squirrel, they're rarely close enough to maturity to give off much in the way of truffly notes.
That said, the intact specimen smells decent enough, so I may just shave this over scrambled eggs as a half-time treat while catching the Champions League final.
Buzzing to find a posse of RESIDENTIAL orchids this afternoon, brazenly sunning themselves on a small suburban lawn.
Mostly Bee Orchids (Ophrys apifera), but with one single variant known as the Wasp Orchid (Ophrys apifera var. trullii) with narrower, more wasp-like flowers.
The homeowner was very happy for me to hang out with these beauties, which are, I think, my favourite native orchid.
Oh, hello!! It's that time again...
Summer Cep (Boletus reticulatus) under oak on a grassy verge. South Bucks.
Might be a bit nibbled but there's plenty of primo porcino left for my evening meal
