After much searching through Google I am pretty sure the dark finger like growths are Dead Man's Fingers (Xylaria polymorpha)but I am not at all sure about the orange growths. To me they could well be one of the many variations I found called Jack O'Lantern but which variety is still a mystery to me. There was also a clump of these growing on top of the stump.
Continuing through to the back of the churchyard there was a lovely patch of Snowdrops under a group of ancient trees,
There I stood for a while with Bobby patiently waiting as I scoured the branches and trunks for any signs of bird or animal life to no avail. The only creatures about were some fancy chickens which had escaped from the neighbouring house and a lone rabbit hopping about the grass.
As we walked through the churchyard we passed one of my favourite spots this time of year. Here a large group of Winter Aconite were showing their bright yellow flower buds which will be opening over the next week or so.
Twice in the past I have gathered seed from these plants. Each time they have germinated but as soon as they reached about an inch in height they wilted and died. I see it is possible to buy the bulbs of cultivated Winter Aconite so I must try that way to get my own display of one of my favourite late Winter / early Spring flowers.
Devils Fingers definitely but the other I'm not sure but it could be Common Brownie.
ReplyDeleteGood to see the Snowdrops out John. Spring is on its way :)
ReplyDeleteHello Adrian. Thanks for that. There seem to be so many which look similar to the orange ones.
ReplyDeleteHello Keith. Always great to see the Snowdrops and Winter Aconite in flower. Spring can't come soon enough for me. I planted out a small tree in the garden this morning and even with gloves on my fingers felt frozen by the time I had finished.
ReplyDeleteI'm not too good on fungi ID but it is a vast and fascinating subject, I must start studying my books!
ReplyDeleteHow lovely to see the Winter Aconites, that is one of the first flowers of the year that we used to hunt for on childhood walks with my mother, I still get a thrill when I see them now.
There are I use Collins wild guide Mushrooms and Toadstools. Find it can narrow it down if I check the season they are about in. Having said all that it looks a bit like a honey fungus and as you say a bit like fifty others. Phil will know
ReplyDeletehttp://cabinetofcuriosities-greenfingers.blogspot.com/
A good site if you have never been. Some damned long words mind!
Hello Jan. Hard to believe Spring is anywhere nearby today - Just above freezing all day and a couple hours of gentle snow this afternoon.
ReplyDeleteI have ordered some Winter Aconite bulbs as I would love to have some growing in the garden.
Hi Adrian. I always keep an eye on Phil's sites. If I am lucky he might nip in for a look. He was on the radio on Sunday morning - The Living World, Aukland Castle Deer Park. Very good. If you missed it you can listen to it on:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00qm35q/The_Living_World_The_Deer_Park/
I've just ordered a copy of Collins Complete British Mushrooms and Toadstools.
Hello John, I wonder whether the orange fungi might be Velvet Shank, Flammulina velutipes which is stimulated to fruit by frosty weather, (but then again Im no expert).
ReplyDeleteI saw something just like the dark finger like fungi last year but never managed to put a name to it, so thank you for sharing your findings. Linda
Hello Linda. Thanks for your suggestion. There seem to be quite a few which look very similar - another being Kuehneromyces mutabilis. If it ever stops raining or snowing I'll take a camera with me and try to get some better photos.
ReplyDeleteHi again John, I like a good mystery like this! I think you need to get closer shots of the stem to sort out an ID. I’d guess it wasn’t Jack O'Lantern because of the stem colour. I would agree more with Linda :-)
ReplyDeleteHello Shirl. Yes, I need some more detailed, closer shots of the fungus to get a better stab at identifying it.
ReplyDelete