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Many mysteries of millenia past enshroud Ötzi the Iceman, who roamed the Alps more than 5,300 years ago before his apparent murder and subsequent alpine mummification. Among numerous anthropologically significant possessions, he carried conks on a leather strap, including several pieces of Tinder Conk. I've often heard that it was used not only for tinder but also to carry lit coals while traveling, though I haven't tried it yet myself.
A common white rot fungus, F. fomentarius lives as an endophyte within healthy trees, a parasite within ailing ones, and a saprophyte that helps to quickly decompose and return them to the soil. This character wears many hats, playing shifting ecological roles, and as it happens can also be made into hats and other adornments by soaking and pounding it into a stiff, leather-like material.
The Fire Conk was once a coveted luxury both for tinder and to quickly stop bleeding. But perhaps its greatest promise lies in its role as a prolific decomposer of coniferous wood, capable of gracefully accelerating the nutrient recovery of decimated forests. It produces perennial fruitbodies which continue to grow slowly for years, and is not a practical species for indoor cultivation. It is, however, an excellent candidate for doweling stumps, logs and downed or diseased trees. (Caution and studiousness are always warranted when making cultivation choices that may affect the long-term stability of delicate ecologies.)
I have always found this polypore to carry an air of elegance, and feel that it is a benevolent ally. This wild clone came from a 12- or 13-year-old fruitbody among several older ones, aloft on an old Douglas Fir snag in the Blue Mountains of northeastern Oregon. It grows slowly but steadily in culture, and takes readily to a variety of woods.
Tinder Conk
Fomes fomentarius
Many mysteries of millenia past enshroud Ötzi the Iceman, who roamed the Alps more than 5,300 years ago before his apparent murder and subsequent alpine mummification. Among numerous anthropologically significant possessions, he carried conks on a leather strap, including several pieces of Tinder Conk. I've often heard that it was used not only for tinder but also to carry lit coals while traveling, though I haven't tried it yet myself.A common white rot fungus, F. fomentarius lives as an endophyte within healthy trees, a parasite within ailing ones, and a saprophyte that helps to quickly decompose and return them to the soil. This character wears many hats, playing shifting ecological roles, and as it happens can also be made into hats and other adornments by soaking and pounding it into a stiff, leather-like material.
The Fire Conk was once a coveted luxury both for tinder and to quickly stop bleeding. But perhaps its greatest promise lies in its role as a prolific decomposer of coniferous wood, capable of gracefully accelerating the nutrient recovery of decimated forests. It produces perennial fruitbodies which continue to grow slowly for years, and is not a practical species for indoor cultivation. It is, however, an excellent candidate for doweling stumps, logs and downed or diseased trees. (Caution and studiousness are always warranted when making cultivation choices that may affect the long-term stability of delicate ecologies.)
I have always found this polypore to carry an air of elegance, and feel that it is a benevolent ally. This wild clone came from a 12- or 13-year-old fruitbody among several older ones, aloft on an old Douglas Fir snag in the Blue Mountains of northeastern Oregon. It grows slowly but steadily in culture, and takes readily to a variety of woods.
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You are not alone.
Fungaia
Walla Walla, Washington
Copyright © 2025 Alembic Enterprises LLC.
You are not alone.
Fungaia
Walla Walla, Washington
Copyright © 2025 Alembic Enterprises LLC.