What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have never been discovered.-Ralph Waldo Emerson
Jack'O Lantern or Foxfire Mushrooms are not edible. Do Not C
Where Do Jack O Lanterns Grow
Jack-o-lantern mushrooms are decomposers that grow in large clusters in hardwood forests. They are often found near oak trees, but can also be found in mixed woods with coniferous trees. They are commonly found in the following places:
- At the base of deciduous trees
- On stumps
- Emerging from decaying underground roots
- On buried decaying hardwood roots, especially oaks and Sweet Chestnut
- In lawns and park grassland near to trees
Jack-o-lantern mushrooms are found throughout Europe and North America. They are typically found from July through Octobe
How To Identify Jack'O Lantern
This amazing mushroom is bright orange to yellowish orange, with sharp-edged gills descending the stalk. Its cap is convex, meaning that its slightly rounded becoming flat to funnel shaped, sunken in the center as it gets older. A Jacks texture is smooth. Its gills are narrow; sharp-edged; crowded; nonbranching; orange to yellowish orange. The gills also descend to the stalk where they stop. The stalk (also called a Stipe) it self starts to taper toward the base; same color as cap but darkening toward the base. A Jack O Lanterns spore print: is a pale cream.
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They Glow With The Same Chemical As Fireflies
The jack-o-lantern mushroom has a blue-green bioluminescence. Jack-o-lantern mushrooms get their ability to glow from an enzyme called Luciferase. Luciferase is the same chemical compound that allows fireflies to glow.
Best time to see it is when its white spores begin to drop on a very dark night.
Look-A-Likes and How To Tell Them Apart
Jack O Lantern Mushrooms have sometimes been mistaken for a choice edible mushroom called the Cahnterelle because of lack of correct identification, CLICK HERE to learn about chanterelles.
Lsted below are a couple of the main characteristics on how to tell them apart. The gills are a big give away. Check them to distinguish: Chanterelle mushrooms have false gills which means that they cannot be separated from the cap without the gills breaking, they kind of look like veins. Contrastingly, Jack o'lantern mushrooms have true gills, and these are forked, knife-like, and can be cut off without damaging the cap.
- Chanterelle gills also look as though they have melted.
- The distribution of the mushrooms can also indicate the species. Chanterelles only grow near trees and don't grow in large groups. Jack o'lanterns grow in dense clusters and can grow where there are no trees, such as in the middle of a field.
- Chanterelle mushrooms are safe to consume, while Jack o'lantern mushrooms are very toxic
- IF IN ANY DOUBT do not collect or place near other foraged mushrooms.
