Hen of the Woods, Ram’s Head, Dancing Mushroom…these are just a few of the many names that Maitake goes by. Known botanically as Grifola frondosa, this mushroom has been prized over the centuries as a wonderful food and medicine. Gatherers were known to dance with joy upon finding this mushroom, with good reason, besides all the health benefits, this mushroom was worth its weight in silver.
Maitake – Grifola frondosa, snuggled into the base of a Pin Oak tree.
Today, foragers dance with joy as this is one of the primo mushrooms hunted in the fall for its wonderful flavor. Maitake not only tastes great fresh, it also stores really well through dehydration, freezing, and pickling.
Drying Maitake on a screen in the sun.
In the herbalist’s realm, this fungi is prized for its use with diabetes, cancer, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and more. This issue will focus on the medicinal uses of this great mushroom, though I’ve thrown in my favorite way of eating Maitake just for fun!
Majestic Maitakes’s Table of Contents:
Note to Parents
Supply List
Calendar
Herb Spirit
All About Maitake
Herbal Glossary
Scramble, Search and More: Circle the Energetics, List the Vitamins and Minerals, Word Search, Word Scramble, Multiple Choice
Herbal Botany
Herbal Lore: The Birth of Maitake, the Dancing Mushroom
Songs and Poems: Sacred Maitake, The Harvest of Maitake
Herbal Recipes: Maitake Extract, Maitake Tea, Powdering Maitake, Encapsulating Maitake, Maitake Face Mask, Faux Clam Chowder
Coloring Page
Herbal Crafts: Pressing/rubbing/drawing of Maitake, Maitake Spore Prints
Herbal Jokes and Puns
Maze: Can you find your way to the Maitake Patch?
Journal: Write your thoughts, medicine making notes and other information about your month with Maitake
Crossword Puzzle
Resources
PDF digital file – 48 pages from Cover to Cover.
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