Troll’s Knoll Forest

Park Map

Find the Troll’s Knoll mushroom patch, a moss-covered turtle, and information about the specific trees in the park

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Mushrooms of the Troll’s Forest

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Never eat a wild mushroom without proper identification by someone familiar with potential look-alikes
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This mushroom patch contains a variety of fungi that help to decompose dead plant material, and return their nutrients to the soil

Troll’s Mushroom Patch

A small mushroom patch on the north end of the park includes some commonly cultivated mushroom species

Mushrooms are created by fungi that spend most of their time living quietly underground or inside wood as fine, white threads known as mycelium.

When conditions are just right, the mycelium will create mushrooms on the surface in order to disperse spores.

When spores land on a suitable food source, they will begin to grow as a new mycelial colony.

Pleurotus ostreatus
Oyster

One of the most commonly cultivated, and also wild foraged mushrooms. Like most cultivated species, it is a wood-lover and is found in the wild growing on dead trees and stumps.

Stropharia rugosoannulata

King Stropharia

Also known as the garden giant, this mushroom grows on a range of substrates getting its nutrition as both a primary and secondary decomposer.

Hericium erinaceus

Lion’s Mane

One of 4-5 Hericium species in the US, lion’s mane typically grows from the side of logs and stumps. It grows as a tight rounded pom-pom

Ganoderma lucidum

Reishi

Reishi is a woody polypore mushroom that is cultivated for use in teas, tinctures, and powders. The PNW is home to other Ganoderma species including G. oregonense, and G. applanatum.

Other Common Urban Mushrooms

Below is a selection of wild mushrooms that might be found in urban parks like the Troll’s Knoll. This list includes edible and toxic mushrooms. Many of these mushrooms are decomposers and are often found on dead logs, grass, compost and wood chips. Others are only found growing with specific trees like pine, Douglas fir, or birch.

Trees of the Troll’s Knoll Forest

Deciduous Trees

Deciduous trees are those that lose their leaves in the fall. The Troll’s Forest has 13 different deciduous species including cottonwood, oak, cherry, apple, and maple

Apple

Malus

Apple trees in the park are maintained by City Fruit

Black Cottonwood

Populus trichocarpa

Black cottonwood is one of the most popular trees in the park and is native to the western US. The genus Populus also includes aspen and poplar trees.

Black Locust

Robinia pseudoacacia

Cherry

Prunus

Cherry Laurel

Prunus laurocerasus

Cork Oak

Quercus suber

English Hawthorn

Crataegus monogyna

Magnolia

Magnolia grandiflora

Maples

Japanese Maple

Acer palmatum

Red Maple

Acer rubrum

Oak

Quercus

Quaking Aspen

Populus tremuloides

Sumac

Rhus

Coniferous Trees

Coniferous trees are trees that have cones. They are typically evergreens and do not lose their leaves in the fall. Many conifers have leaves that are long thin needles however others like western redcedar have wide, scaly leaves.