'Shrooms not tombs

A visit to a Quaker burial ground on the edge of Philadelphia turned from a pleasant but casual bike-around to an exciting fungal opportunity when I spotted the acres of grass dotted with ancient oaks and hemlocks, shrubs, piles of leaves and bark mulch, and lines of modest white stones - all that the deceased inhabitants require to mark their graves.

These quiet few acres have existed peacefully here since 1860 when the original plot of farmland was bought and set aside for the use of the burgeoning Quaker population of Phildelphia. Very probably, many of the great trees were already in place and have continued providing shade and shelter to their silent companions as the city spread and grew around the perimeter.

I could see that these mature trees and natural surrounding betokened ideal conditions for fungi and so it proved. There were Russulae and Boleti, bracket mushrooms and puffballs, stinkhorns emerging from gelatinous bulbs, earthstars with curled back arms and bird's nest fungi like a multitude of tiny cups.

The prize find was these two specimens of Sparassis spathulata growing among the roots of a giant oak. I recognised it immediately as very similar but not identical to its cousin Sparassis crispa which I found once only, many years ago. The mushroom looks in size and shape rather like a buff-coloured lettuce, in fact it's sometimes called cauliflower fungus. It makes excellent eating and these two went towards a risotto al funghi and a mushroom soup.

Here I've placed them (one upside down to show the white below) beside a random grave marker out of the 4000 or so here. It appears to identify the resting place of one Lydia South, born in 1858, died perhaps in the 1930s - the letters are eroded and it hardly matters anyway. From the outset, Friends using the burial ground were (I quote) urged to conform to true simplicity in all funeral arrangements, to avoid the custom of wearing mourning and to avoid elaborate and expensive caskets. For the sake of simplicity and an expressed commitment to the equality of all persons, elaborate grave markers are discouraged, the guidelines stipulating: sixteen inches long horizontally, eight inches thick and rising eight inches or less above the ground, inscribed only with the decedent's name, date of birth and date of death.
For some there is just the scattering of ashes and no marker at all.
"It is also noted that for the sake of mowing the grass, markers flush with the ground might be best. Experience tells us this is a good idea. Taking care of a burial ground is a lot of work."

For me personally, to be buried or sprinkled here would be mycological heaven.