The Ultimate "What is this Fungi?" thread.
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Those are easy. The bad news is that these are not welcomed by gardeners, because they will spread via their "bootlaces" and attack any weak tree or shrub that takes their fancy. The good news is that you can eat them, although they must be very well cooked.
Armillaria mellea - honey fungus.
Armillaria mellea - honey fungus.
Thanks. Well, they are in the bin nowMy son has an irrational phobia of mushrooms.
They'll probably be back to pay you another visit.
Bit of a waste to put them in the bin. They're good eaters.
You mean wary, not weary. And why? Unless you've got dogs that might be doing their business around there, or you've been using loads of chemicals on your garden, or you aren't sure what they are, then what is the problem?
They cause gastric/allergic reactions in some people. Somebody last week told me they were made sick by these, and they believed it was because they hadn't been cooked for long enough. Cooking breaks down the chemicals that cause the reaction. But it is also the case that they need to be properly cooked from a purely culinary point of view - they're quite tough and resilient, and can take some serious punishment and come out tasting lovely. I usually put them in the roasting dish with a joint of fatty meat and just let them sizzle for an hour.
One of my favourite edibles.
ETA: you only eat the caps. The stems are too tough.
Maybe. Probably next year.
Found two days ago. Some of the fungi are having a great year, anyway:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CtuuaFzc1qM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CtuuaFzc1qM
They're impressive looking Geoff !
Didn't realise they were edible.
Cheers, Paul
Some people say they aren't so good. They taste a bit like melon rind. I'd say they're OK. I'm certainly pleased to find them in a year like this, when there's not much else about. And even if they weren't edible, I'd still love them because they look so spectacular.
Taken on a stroll today, growing in abundance under hazel and broadleaf.
Looks like it should belong in the Mycena/Hemimycena group but the two tone stems got me.
Looks like it should belong in the Mycena/Hemimycena group but the two tone stems got me.
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Both the habitat and the two-tone stem point to Marasmius, and that looks like M. rotula. Relative of the fairy ring mushroom (which is one of the few Marasmius species that doesn't grow on woody debris.)
Geoff
Geoff
I know nothing about fungus, and this is what I found on my first time looking. I'd love to know what they are called.
Hi Ash Blue,
(1) are waxcaps (Hygrocybe) of some sort. These are very beautiful, many of them are uncommon, and foragers shouldn't really go around ripping them out of the ground.
(2) is a Mycena, looks like inclinata.
What can I say about (3)? You broke the law when you picked it, and you publicly incriminated yourself when you posted the picture. The law is an bottom, and that is Psilocybe semilanceata, otherwise known as a Liberty Cap or "magic mushroom."
(4) looks like a very wet Clitocybe rivulosa or Fool's Funnel, which is deadly.
and (5) looks like Arrhenia griseopallida.
ETA: I wasn't trying to be funny when I said the law is an bottom. It's a really stupid law, and you just demonstrated why. You are the second person I know of who has committed what is now a criminal offence and then posted the evidence online. The law assumes that everybody who might go picking fungi, for whatever reason (looking for food, worried about their kids eating it in the garden, generally interested in wildlife, etc...) knows this species. But why should they know this species? Unless they are specifically interested in finding hallucinogenic fungi, this mushroom is just one of hundreds of superficially similar grassland species, most of which are not particularly interesting.
It's worth repeating that second reason:
Worried parent finds P. semilanceata in the garden their toddler plays in - has no idea whether it is dangerous or not. Picks it, takes a picture, and posts it online. Parent is told that she did the right thing, because this is not what you want your toddler to be eating. In order to do the right thing, it was necessary for the parent to commit a criminal offence, and publish evidence of it. If that's not bonkers, I don't know what is.
Geoff
(1) are waxcaps (Hygrocybe) of some sort. These are very beautiful, many of them are uncommon, and foragers shouldn't really go around ripping them out of the ground.
(2) is a Mycena, looks like inclinata.
What can I say about (3)? You broke the law when you picked it, and you publicly incriminated yourself when you posted the picture. The law is an bottom, and that is Psilocybe semilanceata, otherwise known as a Liberty Cap or "magic mushroom."
(4) looks like a very wet Clitocybe rivulosa or Fool's Funnel, which is deadly.
and (5) looks like Arrhenia griseopallida.
ETA: I wasn't trying to be funny when I said the law is an bottom. It's a really stupid law, and you just demonstrated why. You are the second person I know of who has committed what is now a criminal offence and then posted the evidence online. The law assumes that everybody who might go picking fungi, for whatever reason (looking for food, worried about their kids eating it in the garden, generally interested in wildlife, etc...) knows this species. But why should they know this species? Unless they are specifically interested in finding hallucinogenic fungi, this mushroom is just one of hundreds of superficially similar grassland species, most of which are not particularly interesting.
It's worth repeating that second reason:
Worried parent finds P. semilanceata in the garden their toddler plays in - has no idea whether it is dangerous or not. Picks it, takes a picture, and posts it online. Parent is told that she did the right thing, because this is not what you want your toddler to be eating. In order to do the right thing, it was necessary for the parent to commit a criminal offence, and publish evidence of it. If that's not bonkers, I don't know what is.
Geoff
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Oh.. I forgot to take my camera, and being my first mushroom spotting trip, I wanted to record what I seen. Next time I'll make sure to take my camera and not pick any.. By the way, is it still incriminating to pick the liberty cap one if I didn't know what they were?
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xylaria
Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
As far as I know you don't break a law picking a drugs act listed fungi if you are studying them. I was told this by a copper that stopped and searched me going through central london on the underground with a basket. He was looking for red headed IRA oprative, but asked on seeing my basket " are any of these magic" i replied " all mushrooms are magic, but these ones have dark purple spores and bruise blue therefore....." He was pretty greatful for the short ID lesson, and clarified what was the law at the time. One species of that group cant break the law as it is no where near a "dose" for drug taking purposes.
I had a really lovely walk today with the county recorder for fungi. Wax caps in wales are really important because there is so much inproved grassland we have global significant population. The red hygrocybe is a waxcap , you would need to cut it half and either post up or discribe how the gill attach to the stem for it to get IDed. They are beautiful fungi that is in most cases form large networks under grass.
I had a really lovely walk today with the county recorder for fungi. Wax caps in wales are really important because there is so much inproved grassland we have global significant population. The red hygrocybe is a waxcap , you would need to cut it half and either post up or discribe how the gill attach to the stem for it to get IDed. They are beautiful fungi that is in most cases form large networks under grass.
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Contrary to what xylaria has just said, I believe you committed an offence the moment you picked it. Not knowing what it is is not a defence under the new law.
I don't think it's a crime to pick them if you don't know what they are. BBC news: "Exceptions will be made for people who unknowingly pick the mushrooms in the wild or find them growing in their garden, and critics have argued the act will be difficult to police."
I find it pathetic that anyone can make it a crime to eat a mushroom. No one owns nature. It's a shame.
I find it pathetic that anyone can make it a crime to eat a mushroom. No one owns nature. It's a shame.
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