The Curtis’s puffball is one of the most fascinating members of a very fascinating family, many of which, like Lycoperdon curtisii, are edible. On our land in Botetourt County, Virginia, this round, white mushroom typically begins appearing in late June and continues to do so through the rest of the summer.
One of this fungi’s intriguing traits is its small size, which is no bigger than your little fingernail. Another is its penchant for appearing in strange places. Last summer, for example, some Curtis’s cropped up in the gravel/grass edge near our mailbox. When I gathered them, I had to sift out the gravel and other debris. The place where I’m most likely to find them is in the grassy logging road that encompasses much of our land.
This ball-shaped mushroom sports soft spines that easily break off. Because it usually grows in crowded colonies, the round shape is often distorted as well. When edible, the flesh (as is the norm with puffballs) is pure white. If the white flesh has even a small glimmer of an olive-green color, spores have started to form and that individual is not edible. It also will soon be puffing out those spores, as well.
As is the case with almost all edible mushrooms, Curtis’s have to be cooked before consumption. My wife typically briefly stir fries this tiny mushroom if it is to be eaten in salads. For egg entrees, she adds Curtis’s toward the end of the cooking process. Again, as is true with mushrooms, have an expert positively interview a species new to you before eating it. Two of the best field guides for mushroom identification are Appalachian Mushrooms and the National Audubon Society Field Guide to Mushrooms.
Bruce and Elaine Ingram wrote Living the Locavore Lifestyle about living off the land. For more information: bruceingramoutdoors@gmail.com.
