autumn fungi

[Tantalus]

nobody found anything interesting this autumn?

Tant

 

[Stew]

I found some shaggy ink caps the other day! :mrgreen:

 

[Tantalus]

did you eat em?

i never did yet

find em hard to identify before they start going all drippy

by the time they have gone all drippy its too late to eat em :roll:

Tant

 

[tomtom]

i found a load of them the otherday too.. but they had already gone drippy...

remember to note the spot and check back earlier next year!

 

[Stew]

I did eat them and they were yummy. There were only 3 of a size worth taking, but there were more just poking out of the grass.

Sadly it's not somewhere I'll be going back to for a long time!

 

[ScottC]

I've seen loads of Fungi but don't know what any of them are :roll:, Will be getting a few books soon so they will come in handy for next year

 

[bothyman]

Loads of Oyster Mushrooms came home with half a Carrier bag full the other day left the rest for later could pick half a bag a day for a week and still leave as many again, the Chantrelles are nearly all gone but still getting a few, don't really bother with the other stuff . :wave:

 

[Moonraker]

Nice haul bothyman. I reckon Oysters are one of the best finds because they seem to keep coming and lots of them! here are a haul from a few weeks ago. Great for Chinese/ stir fry recipes

Here is my best haul of Ceps this year to date from last Friday. 6.5kg/ 14lbs and mostly younger specimens. Worth getting up at 05:30 and trekking through pine forests getting scratched to pieces for these There are some Orange Birch Bolete (really nice used right away for omelettes etc but go jet black quickly and when dried! But still taste good) in the bottom right and also some nice 'pied de mouton' or hedgehog fungi front bottom right which are really nice with chicken in a creamy sauce

The French love all sorts of hunting/ foraging including mushies so lots of competition for picking. Luckily for me they only go for a few well known species such as ceps, chanterelles, horn of plenty, field mushrooms. So I get to have free rein with the others

Simon

 

[Adi007]

Amazing haul! Enjoy!

 

[Tantalus]

niiiiiiice catch moonraker

the birch boletes and assorted ceps should be good for drying

I jus slice em and lay em out on cardboard in the airing cupboard

and yup i agree with ya on the orange (blue when bruised) ones
they go very soft when cooked but add an egg or 3 and they are delicious

Tant

 

[bothyman]

Wish I could tell the good ones from the bad ones , got the books but still not sure of a lot of them, problem is no one bothers with them up here, they just tend to stick to field mushrooms, so I have no one to ask which is which. :roll:

 

[Adi007]

Wish I could tell the good ones from the bad ones , got the books but still not sure of a lot of them, problem is no one bothers with them up here, they just tend to stick to field mushrooms, so I have no one to ask which is which. :roll:

Which books you got Bothyman? I've got a lot but the best have to be Peter Jordan's stuff ... http://www.tastymushroompartnership.co.uk/

 

[Tantalus]

problem is no one bothers with them up here

that means....................

all the more for you ):

now all we need is a way for ya to ID them better

Tant

 

[Moonraker]

Wish I could tell the good ones from the bad ones , got the books but still not sure of a lot of them, problem is no one bothers with them up here, they just tend to stick to field mushrooms, so I have no one to ask which is which. :roll:

Books are useful (Adi007's suggestion is a good one I have used) but it is best to get the chance to forage with people we know if possible.

bothyman, quite a few organisations and groups now do organised mushroom forays for beginners and experts alike. Like the National Trust in England. One of the best I think are the Forestry Commission organised ones. Here is an example from last weekend, pretty close to you I think? And free

From: Forestry Commision - Fungi for First Timers (Winding Walks)

Fungi for First Timers
(Winding Walks)
Winding Walks Car Park
Whiteash
Moray Forests
Moray
Scotland
OS Grid Reference: NJ358585
Type of Event: wildlife/nature and guided

Date:
Sunday October 3 2004

*Time: 14:00
Description:
Enjoy a stroll along the paths above the steep-sided burn in Whiteash Woods to discover the bounty of late autum fungi. Be amazed by the variety, colours and lifestyle of these fascinating fruits. 2 hours, moderate.

Cost of Event: Free

Meeting Place: Winding Walks Car Park

How to get there: From Fochabers follow the A98 east towards Buckie and the Winding Walks car park is approximately 1 mile from Fochabers on the right

Clothing Required:
Stout footwear required

Booking Required: Yes, Booking essential

Dogs Allowed: no

Contact:
Jim Lauder
District Forester
01343 820223
e-mail: fe.moray@forestry.gsi.gov.uk

Maybe harder for you right up there. I had a look at the British Mycological Society site which is a useful starting place to find local Fungus groups. The nearest to you who organise mushroom forays I have been able to find is the:

Grampian Fungus Group

They have a page on Forays with plenty going on. The last one of the season was unfortunately today :

Sat Oct 9th 2004

GFG foray at Forvie, 1.30 to 3.30 pm. Meet at Waterside car park, north of Newburgh, east of River Ythan (NK 003270 OS map 38 Aberdeen)

These groups tend to be interested mainly in fungi scientifically and not necessarily for foraging but they are good for learning to identify specimens and it is nice to learn about the other non edibles too.

Before anything you really should checkout the:

Scottish Natural Heritage The Scottish Wild Mushroom Code

Good advice and consideration for nature and others. In fact good advice for all mushroom foragers.

I am glad attitudes to mushrooms and fungi in general are changing in the UK even if there are dangers from commercial scale picking. Our dread of fungi goes a long way back in the UK. Take this quote form the C16th:

The Grete Herball, published in 1526 from the original French text:

"Mussheroons: There be two manners of them; one manner is deadly and slayeth them that eateth them and be called tode stools, and the other doeth not. They that be not deadly have a grosse gleymy moysture that is disobedient to nature and digestyon, and be peryllous and dreadfull to eate, and therefore it is good to eschew them."

Doesn't sound to tasty does it ): No wonder our British ancestors were not too keen on them.

There is a very interesting article on commercial mushroom picking in Scotland here ( includes other wild foods too):

FLORA CELTICA: SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF SCOTTISH PLANTS - Chapter 2 Food and drinks - Fresh wild foods

From the site ( just one paragraph of many)

2.3 The wild mushroom industry in Scotland has grown rapidly over the last ten years. Four mushroom buyers now operate in Scotland, with an average total annual turnover of £270,550 in Scottish wild mushrooms. The growth of the industry in Scotland is comparatively small scale, and since the fall of the Iron Curtain there has been a substantial drop in prices (due to competition from Eastern Europe). Nevertheless it still has the potential to provide valuable extra income from woodland throughout the life of a timber crop. A total of 20 jobs are directly attributable to the harvest, and approximately 350 pickers benefit from casual earnings. These earnings are comparatively small, averaging £28.70 per week (Dyke, 1999). Nevertheless it is occasionally possible for a picker to gather as much as £1000 worth of wild mushrooms in a single day (D. Peebles, pers. comm.).

It would be very difficult to compete with say the Russians where the going price for Ceps is a mere 29p/ kilo :shock: But there is a good domestic market I understand.

Finally check out the Mycologue - Mushroom Resources page for some more Scottish fungi links ( and others all over the UK).

happy picking

Simon

 

[tomtom]

If anybody is interested or down this way (infact you probably need to be both).. wild wise are hosting this...
Planet Fungus - Dr Christian Taylor
Mushrooms, brackets, puffballs, pusts, rusts, smuts and slimemoulds! The classic autumnal day-out foraging in Devon’s abundant fungal kingdom, plus informative lectures and slide-show.

im going to try to get there!

 

[bothyman]

Which books you got Bothyman? I've got a lot but the best have to be Peter Jordan's stuff ... http://www.tastymushroompartnership.co.uk/

I have a few but the main ones I use are "Food for Free" the Collins Gem one and the Roger Philips Mushrooms one but still not sure what some of them are.

Moonraker thanks for the info but Moray thing is about 100 miles south of me.