Is this edible?

Thanks but no thanks

Often times when we take a walk around the lakes or the wooded areas about campus, we see berries, mushrooms, and more. As these various items are spotted in the wild, a question arises. Is this edible? Could this red berry or this small mushroom be added to a salad, soup, or something else. But before we decide to take a taste of Mother Nature, we should really thoroughly investigate what exactly we might be nibbling on. While walking about the walnut groves on the far northeast side of campus, this bright yellow fungus was spotted on a tree stump. Identified as Chicken of the Forest, Laetiporus gilbertsonii, is an edible fungus, but since properly identifying fungi is extremely difficult, it's best to look and not taste. On spotting Chicken of the Forest, a botanist and theologian, speaking on the condition of anonymity, shared, " Laetiporus gilbertsonii? What's NOT for dinner... that!"

BUT THERE'S MORE...

To listen to this week's installment of In the Red Room on:

iTunes, click HERE.

Spotify, click HERE.

SoundCloud, click HERE.