Though the loss of my baby Reishi mushrooms was
disppointing, my spirit was duly lifted when I spotted
a host of what appeared to be Reishi mushrooms
growing on a large, dead Hemlock on our next-door
neighbor's property. Suffice it to say, I wasted no time in
making a bee line over to the tree to check out what
was 'growing on.' Much to my unimaginable delight, the
tree was covered with Reishis of all sizes! There were
at least three dozen populating the tree. I inspected the
tree and the mushrooms as I anticipated harvesting
some of these beauties which brings me to share
another cardinal rule of foraging: for the sake of
respect and courtesy, always ask permission from
the property owner before harvesting anything on
their land.

Above: large Reishi mushroom colony

Looking up at the Reishis, the three darker
ones in the lower right of the photo are last year's
leftovers. I remember looking at them last
summer but they were unrecognizable.
It is good that I did not pick them, since it
is a good practice to leave some Reishis on
the tree so that they can continue propagating.

Above: smaller Reishi mushrooms growing
near the base of the tree

With permission granted to harvest the
Reishis, neighbor Carlton officiated in
the extraction. With a small crowbar in hand,
the mushrooms were successfully
extricated from the tree.
This is not necessarily easy work, since
the Reishis (especially older ones) are
inherently tough and therefore difficult
to pry off the tree.

Keep going...