Turkey tails are one of the most iconic mushrooms found in forests, their distinctive clusters of leathery fan-shaped caps dotting decaying hardwood logs and stumps with vibrant bands of browns, blues, reds, oranges and creamy white. Turkey tails’ vibrant beauty reminds us to slow down, observe and reflect upon nature’s subtle artistry within woodland ecosystems. Turkey tails serve an important function as part of nature’s recycling team – decomposing wood’s tough lignin/cellulose composite into nutrients which then returns nutrients back into soil – thus supporting woodland ecosystems through life cycles of death/rebirth/rebirth cycles in woodland ecosystems. Turkey tails play an essential part in nature’s recycling team!

The turkey tail mushroom is a bracket fungus found year-round on dead wood surfaces, most frequently hard maple and oak. Common in temperate forests, this species thrives under shaded conditions with damp decaying wood that contains dampness or damp conditions that support decaying wood. Named for its appearance, this mushroom gets its name from its broad fan-shaped cap resembling that of wild turkey feathers. Color options range from browns to blues to purple and green; its surface has concentric rings of color while the underside features pores instead of gills; sometimes this mushroom can be mistaken for its lookalikes such as False Turkey Tail (Stereum ostrea) or Violet-Toothed Polypore (Trichaptum biforme), both lacking their own distinctive zones while having smooth undersides with no pores at all.

Turkey tail is well known for its immune modulatory effects, providing balance and support to the immune system in chronic illnesses, autoimmune conditions, digestive issues such as leaky gut and small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO), as well as healing herpes/shingles/HIV by inhibiting reverse transcriptase enzyme. Furthermore, turkey tail also boasts antiviral properties to assist healing or inhibit reverse transcriptase inhibition – making it useful to support healing processes or suppress HIV by inhibiting reverse transcriptase.

Before using turkey tail mushrooms for tea or tincture production, make sure they are completely dry before placing in the dehydrator. Lay down trays on an even surface, set your temperature between 95-100F, and rotate every 6-8 hours – once dehydrated your mushrooms should be perfectly dried out – ready for tea or tincture production.