If you bring some fresh turkeytails (Trametes versicolor) home from the forest, chances are those turkeytails will be home to some tiny little mites who like to eat turkeytails. If you plan on using those turkeytails within a few weeks, it’s no problem, but if you should leave those turkeytails in a paper bag on a hidden shelf in your basement for a year or three, those little mites will have had a feast beyond their greatest expectations.

And that’s exactly what happened here. While sorting through some papermaking supplies on a basement shelf, I came upon a little bag of powdery debris topped by a few holey bits of barely recognizable turkeytails (see the two specimens on the left). The two on the right just came in from the forest and are destined for the next boil-up; the rest of my huge stash of turkeytails are sitting in the freezer until I’m ready to use them.

I freeze mushroom paper for the same reason, following which I coat it with some kind of sealer. Same goes for jewelry mushrooms, too.