Laetiporus Sulphureus "Chicken of the Woods"

Laetiporus sulphureus, with its strident orange or sulphur-yellow colouring, is hard to miss. Known as Chicken-of-the-Woods or the Sulphur Polypore, this bracket fungus is seen most often on beech, oak, chestnut and less frequently on cherry and other hardwoods. Only rarely are these impressive fungi associated with conifers other than Yew. Sometimes, specimens of this large polypore persist through the winter and are able to continue fruiting during the following year. Since the chicken of the woods is often a parasite, there is a good chance that it has killed its host tree. However, the mushrooms do not appear until well after the fungus—in the form of mushroom-less mycelium—has attacke...View all