Ok, it ain't so. I finally found my first Hen October 5th and have found enough since then to put my mind at ease.
Sure after all the rain this summer we could have had a really amazing maitake year with just one September downpour. But it never happened...September rains were down 40%. October didn't exactly bring a monsoon but I guess there was enough consistent small amounts to finally get things started. I've found 2 fairly large Hens and a few medium sized ones so far so I'm satisfied.
In the last few days we've finally had some real rain but it might be too late because its also turned cold, the last nights have been in the mid-30s. I've seen very few mushrooms of any kind in spite of the precip. This weekend's foraging only brought in a small amount of Oyster mushrooms and nothing more.
There's a slight warming trend ahead. I have a feeling it will be the last chance for Hen of the Woods and several other choice edibles like Lion's Mane and Hedgehogs.
