Article written by Kathy Norcross Watts, Northwest Piedmont Master Naturalist Volunteer

Maybe you’re planning to visit haunted woods to celebrate Halloween. Here’s a reminder that nature has its own spectacular, spooky things that creep out of decaying leaf mulch and dine on dead trees.

In May, I learned that what looked like a stray ear lingering on a log in the leaf
litter is actually wood ear fungi, an edible gelatinous fungi, colored reddish brown to
grayish that grows on rotting wood. It’s thin and rubbery and fruits in an ear-like shape. It benefits the forest by digesting wood and returning nutrients to the soil. Wood ear is considered edible and medicinal and has been credited with positively affecting blood coagulation and decreasing blood cholesterol levels. A species of wood ear is cultivated and eaten in China. You may have tasted it in Chinese hot and sour soup. (Information compiled from the Missouri Department of Conservation Field Guide.)

In June, my forest grows dark with foliage, and beneath the canopy, I spotted
slender white tubes that look like they lead to the underworld. The translucent whitish
Ghost pipe isn’t a fungus like I thought. It’s a perennial wildflower without chlorophyll, so it’s not green. It has a single white flower on a scaly stem, and later the flowers turn purple, then black. It gains nourishment by joining its roots to fungi that join tree roots and receive nutrients and moisture from these forest companions. Bumblebees are a primary pollinator of Ghost Pipe, which is considered toxic to people. (Information compiled from the Missouri Department of Conservation Field Guide.)

In August, what looked like soil-covered fingers clawed from beneath a dead log.
The aptly named Dead Man’s Fingers fungi is not edible. The mycelium, or network of fungal cells, grows within dead wood and roots in the forest. The fingers appear above ground in the spring, and spores form and float away to create new mycelia. Fingers grow more gross over the summer and play an important role in decomposition and returning nutrients to the forest. (Information compiled from the Missouri Department of Conservation Field Guide.)