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The gathering and sale of pig's ear fungus in the Howick and Whitford areas
Alan La Roche
Discusses the gathering of pig’s ear fungus as a cash crop for Whitford farmers in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
About the author
Alan La Roche MBE, BDS, was the honorary director of Howick Historical Village from its opening in 1980 until 2007. His numerous publications include The History of Howick and Pakuranga (1991), An Introduction to the Howick Historical Village (1997), So Delightful a Parish: The Revd Vicesimus Lush at Howick, 1850-1865 (2002), and as co-author, The Royal New Zealand Fencibles, 1847-1952 (1997). In 2006 Alan was appointed by the Howick and Districts Historical Society as Howick Historian, and he is currently working on another major history of the area.
More information
What is pig's ear fungus?
Pig’s ear fungus (Auricularia polytricha or Hirneola polytricha), known to the Maori as hakekakeka, is an edible fungus that grows on both the live and decaying trunks of forest trees. In New Zealand it grows especially on mahoe (Melicytus rumiflorus), karaka (Corynocarpus laevigatus) and lacebark (Hoheria populnea), amongst other species. It is a thin, fleshy, ear-like growth, shiny light dark brown colour on one side and a dull whitish grey on the other.[1] When fresh it is soft and like thin leather. When dry it is darker brown and brittle.
Pig’s ear fungus has been known by several other names: -
- Edible jelly fungus, as it is in some states edible and jelly like.
- Jew’s ear fungus, after Judas Iscariot. (Judas is said to have hanged himself on an elder tree, which is host to this fungus.)
- Mu’ku, the Chinese word for wood ear.
- Wood ear fungus, as it looks like a human ear when growing on certain woods.
- Black gold, since it turns black when dried, instead of light brown, and was in past times an important source of income for many farmers.
- Egmont Gold, in Taranaki.
This very similar Auricularia auricula is also known as Jew’s ear, and is eaten in both Europe and Asia, but is not thought to be present in New Zealand. The New Zealand ice plant, Disphyma australe, is also sometimes called ‘pig’s ear’, but is not a fungus.
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