Post by Sam on Aug 10, 2017 6:18:29 GMT -5
This post is a bit lengthy but is a great example of WHY we study ALL parts, textures, smells and appearance of mushrooms to correctly and positively identify them. I saw this 'faerie ring' of mushrooms from my house and naturally went to investigate hoping that they would turn out to be edible (and to me choice) parasols. Expectedly, once Gracie determined that they were not ice cream ... she lost interest.
Once I got close to the mushrooms I could tell that they were not the parasols that I'd hoped for. I still wanted to positively ID them in hopes that the would be edible. I obtained permission from the property owner to pick them. I carefully plucked them, getting the bulb at the bottom of the stem and keeping the whole mushrooms intact.
I first checked the 'veil' or ring on the stem. It did detach with little effort and would slide down the stem. That is good, but not nearly enough information to make a determination.
Next I looked more closely at the gills. These mushroom were VERY fresh and the gills appeared almost white... almost ... even after being picked only a few minutes I thought I could see an almost imperceptible tint of green. The stypes (stems) had also begun to discolor from handling.
The 'nipple' or Umbra on the caps was not well defined and really not present at all.
As you can see, if you've followed this, there are often MANY factors involved in identifying most mushrooms. In this case it was still crucial to do a spore print to determine the possibility of having an edible mushroom. After only half an hour, I could see a definite tint of green to the spores. This was enough, for me, to KNOW that I had Green Gill or Green Spore mushrooms ... POISON! I left the cap on the paper towel overnight so that I'd be sure to get enough spores for a photo.
So, in conclusion, these were beautiful, fresh, firm mushrooms. They looked delicious and smelled very good. Importantly too, I WANTED to eat them. This is a point that most field guides don't go into. Our inability to be objective. To WANT a mushroom to be safe does NOT make it so. I really like mushrooms. Edible parasols are one of my favorites but, there are several look a likes. We must use ALL of the characteristics to be safe. If there is EVER ANY doubt, toss them.
These will be composted by my lawnmower later today. Sad, but maybe they'll grace me with the beauty of another 'faerie ring' in MY yard.
Once I got close to the mushrooms I could tell that they were not the parasols that I'd hoped for. I still wanted to positively ID them in hopes that the would be edible. I obtained permission from the property owner to pick them. I carefully plucked them, getting the bulb at the bottom of the stem and keeping the whole mushrooms intact.
I first checked the 'veil' or ring on the stem. It did detach with little effort and would slide down the stem. That is good, but not nearly enough information to make a determination.
Next I looked more closely at the gills. These mushroom were VERY fresh and the gills appeared almost white... almost ... even after being picked only a few minutes I thought I could see an almost imperceptible tint of green. The stypes (stems) had also begun to discolor from handling.
The 'nipple' or Umbra on the caps was not well defined and really not present at all.
As you can see, if you've followed this, there are often MANY factors involved in identifying most mushrooms. In this case it was still crucial to do a spore print to determine the possibility of having an edible mushroom. After only half an hour, I could see a definite tint of green to the spores. This was enough, for me, to KNOW that I had Green Gill or Green Spore mushrooms ... POISON! I left the cap on the paper towel overnight so that I'd be sure to get enough spores for a photo.
So, in conclusion, these were beautiful, fresh, firm mushrooms. They looked delicious and smelled very good. Importantly too, I WANTED to eat them. This is a point that most field guides don't go into. Our inability to be objective. To WANT a mushroom to be safe does NOT make it so. I really like mushrooms. Edible parasols are one of my favorites but, there are several look a likes. We must use ALL of the characteristics to be safe. If there is EVER ANY doubt, toss them.
These will be composted by my lawnmower later today. Sad, but maybe they'll grace me with the beauty of another 'faerie ring' in MY yard.