Don't eat them!! Bloody hell man - they may be edible, and non-toxic, but they're very highly carcinogenic. Leave well alone. Ferns are so carcinogenic you significantly increase your risk of cancer just by sitting among them. It's the spores, which fiddle-heads contain thousands of.
The things I don't know continue to amaze me. I've not much intention of eating them; they didn't even look all that appetising, but I'd never have thought of them as carcinogenic.
They also need some time to produce those spores. They don't spring up fully mature in the spring. They grow up, gather a little bit of energy, and very soon start producing spores, long before they are full-size. But when unfolded, the spore pods are there but not carrying spores quite yet.
Just like the mushrooms. They start producing spores a little before the gills open, and keep producing spores as long as they last. They don't pop up fully mature, either.
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Otherwise, spot on. Ferns are, in general, toxic, and the spores especially are carcinogenic.
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Just like the mushrooms. They start producing spores a little before the gills open, and keep producing spores as long as they last. They don't pop up fully mature, either.
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So, this means they're OK??? I hope so. I've eaten them.
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