The Turkey-tail Mushroom is recognized in Asia as having medicinal properties similar to those of the Reichi, such as anti-tumor properties, immune system stimulation and regulation of the digestive and respiratory systems. In several countries, it is the object of large-scale cultivation and integrated into numerous therapeutic products. It can be consumed as a tea or powdered in food.
This mushroom grows on stumps, trunks or branches of dead deciduous trees 1 2 3 and is present throughout Quebec. After ligneous matter is collected, this mushroom can easily be used to inoculate branches and healthy tree tops left there. Old, dried-out fruit bodies 1 2 may remain for several years on trunks; however, only the fruit bodies produced that year are picked in late summer or early winter 3 4.
The Turkey-tail Mushroom is recognized by the multicoloured bands on its cap 4. The underside is covered with a thin layer of tubes 5 whose pores are barely visible to the naked eye 6. These two features allow for safe identification to differentiate it from other species of the same size found in this habitat.
Fruit bodies remain for several years on branches and trunks. The next spring, those of the previous year will have lost their colouring 7 and the tubes under their caps will have become brown 8. These old fruit bodies have lost most of their therapeutic properties and should not be picked.
Photos: Fernand Miron, Marcel Otis.
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