The puffball mushroom and its varieties used to belong to the puffball family, they are now part of the champignon family. This species may seem rather unusual, but it has long been known to mushroom pickers. There are a large number of its "folk names": bee sponge, grandfather's tobacco, dust, tobacco mushroom and others.
Varieties
There are several types of puffball mushrooms. Here are the most common ones:
- giant raincoat, or giant golovach;
- prickly - also known as needle and spiny;
- meadow;
- brown (umber);
- pear-shaped.
The body of these mushrooms is large, mostly flattened spherical shape. As they ripen, they acquire elastic white flesh with a pleasant smell and taste. The peculiarity of the raincoat is that it must be eaten until its white color begins to darken. After that, the poison begins to stand out.
The above is just a smalla list of mushrooms that are commonly called raincoats. The most common is the giant raincoat.
Growth areas
Where do puffball mushrooms grow? They are found on almost all continents, with the exception of Antarctica. If we talk about our country, then they grow throughout the territory of Central Russia, as well as in the Caucasus and the Far East. Mushrooms are common in temperate climatic zones of Russia, especially in peat-rich soils.
Often puffball mycelium can be found in pastures, fields, meadows, forest outskirts and in small parks. Usually they are located in the so-called rounded clearings around trees and shrubs.
Description of the first variety
Description of the giant puffball mushroom, let's start with the fact that it is also called the "giant golovach". It differs from ordinary mushrooms of this type in a very large flattened and spherical body, from 25 to 60 cm in cross section. Its weight can reach 10 kg. The mushroom has a white shell, smooth to the touch, which changes over time, loses density and juiciness.
It is considered one of the famous mushrooms of this group and is popular due to its size and taste. The giant raincoat has a spherical shape, most often elongated, with practically no stem. Its size can be compared with the size of the ball, but this is only in some cases.
The puffball mushroom of this variety has a very thin, smooth skin of white color, which over time acquiresyellowish, gray or reddish hue.
Its flesh is also white, with a dense texture and a pleasant mushroom smell. However, over time, it turns into brown dust with a reddish tint, which later flies out through a hole in the mushroom cap.
Prickly raincoat
It also belongs to the champignon family and the genus of puffballs. In the common people, it has the name "pearl raincoat." The fruit body of this type of fungus is often pear-shaped, oval-flattened is also found.
The main distinguishing feature of the spiked raincoat is the spikes, thanks to which it got its name. They are located throughout the body of the mushroom, the largest are on the cap.
The prickly raincoat differs from its counterparts in that its flesh is dense and quite hard, tends to crumble when pressed. This type of mushroom is usually white in color, but over time it begins to darken, turning brown.
Meadow raincoat
It also has the name "field raincoat". This variety is distinguished by a white-olive hue with grayish notes. The meadow raincoat is characterized by the shape of a ball with a flattened top. The body of the fungus itself is dark white or gray-brown. Spikes are also present in the meadow puffball, but disappear as they grow due to precipitation and other natural phenomena.
In the description of the puffball mushroom of this variety, it can be noted that on his hat, like all representatives of this species,there is a hole through which spores are ejected for further reproduction of the mycelium.
Although the meadow raincoat (like the prickly one) has a hat covered with small spikes, they do not have a pronounced volume and size. It compares favorably with its prickly counterpart in that it has juicy pulp, which tastes good both fried and pickled. Growing up, the meadow raincoat reaches a height of 1.5 to 3 cm, the diameter of the cap is 2 to 5 cm.
False raincoats
False raincoat mushroom belonged to real raincoats for a long time, and later to champignon mushrooms. However, as a result of phylogenetic studies, it was found that this species belongs to the Boletidae family.
The most famous representatives of false puffballs are common and warty puffballs. The fruiting body of these mushrooms is most often located on the surface of the earth. Sometimes underground fruiting bodies are laid, which then still come to the surface. False raincoats have large spherical caps and irregularly shaped stalks.
These mushrooms are of several types - "peridium" and "gleba". The former are distinguished by a dense texture, skin interspersed with seals in the stalk and cap. Young false raincoats are white, and this is what misleads mushroom pickers, who mistake them for ordinary ones. The latter differ in that they have a hard dense texture with a pale white color, which becomes gray-black as it ripens, as well as black-violet.
Resemblance to golovach oblong
The prickly puffball is similar to the golovach oblong. It has a pear-shaped shape, and growing up, it reaches a height of about 8 cm. In a young oblong golovach, the fruiting body is white in color, the hat is warty. As it grows, it becomes yellow-brown or brownish in color and becomes smooth.
Young golovachi on the hat do not have a hole for the exit of spores, like raincoats. Growing up, they lose their hats, and only one stalk remains. These mushrooms grow from July to early November, mainly in deciduous and coniferous forests. They, like raincoats, are edible and have a pleasant taste.
Usually they begin to grow profusely immediately after the rains. But they are not recommended to be collected in such weather, because after a few hours they will lose their shape and become unfit for consumption.
Relative of orange puffball
The prickly puffball is also related to the orange puffball. In this fungus, the fruiting body looks like a tuber, but it is elongated from above. Growing up, the orange false raincoat reaches a height of 10 cm. Its upper part has an ocher or yellowish tint.
As it grows, it cracks, and "warts" appear on it. At the bottom, this mushroom is narrowed and wrinkled, and its flesh is white. Puffball orange is not an edible mushroom, but some hobbyists add a small amount to other mushrooms because it has a truffle-like flavor when cooked.
Eating
You can often hear the question: is the puffball mushroom edible or inedible? This mushroom does not belong to the highest category in terms of taste, but it has a rather refined and pleasant taste. Raincoats are undeservedly forgotten in the preparation of various mushroom dishes. So, it's edible, but there are some very important details that need to be figured out before eating it.
Before you start cooking puffball mushroom, you need to find out exactly where it grew, as this variety is extremely susceptible to toxins. The place of growth directly affects both the taste and the content of substances harmful to human he alth. Therefore, it is not recommended to collect them near roads. Nevertheless, they have no poisonous analogues - and this is another noticeable advantage over their "noble relatives".
Only young mushrooms can be eaten, as they do not have a very high content of toxins, and they are not so tough. Raincoats are cleaned of the top layer, as it has an unpleasant taste and hardens the mushrooms.
Subtleties of cooking
While cooking with raincoats, there may be a smell of wood, but it disappears after cooking. In terms of taste, meadow raincoats, which have a white color, are considered leaders. They are somewhat reminiscent of meat, but they are recommended only for frying and marinating - they become tough when boiled.
The main advantage when preparing raincoats is that they do not require priorprocessing, such as boiling or soaking, as with many types of "noble mushrooms". To prevent the raincoats from losing their pleasant mushroom aroma, they do not need to be washed before cooking, it will be enough to clean them with a dry knife.
Healing properties
After scientists discovered the properties of puffball mushroom, it was found that they contain various beneficial substances. In their composition, they contain calvacin, which has antibiotic and anti-carcinogenic properties. Pure mycelial cultures obtained from puffballs have a high activity in the fight against tumors.
Preparations made on the basis of a raincoat contribute to the removal from the body of substances such as radionuclides, heavy metals, toxic chlorine and fluorine compounds. They also help to endure the effects of helminthiases, dysbacteriosis, hepatitis and acute renal inflammation. The healing properties of the raincoat have long been widely used by both traditional healers and official medicine.
Medical use
Interesting facts about the puffball mushroom include the fact that it is able to fight such a serious disease as cancer. Mushroom pulp is used internally and externally. Compresses are made from it and applied to affected areas of the skin, such as ulcers that appear with skin cancer.
Inside take a decoction or alcohol tinctures from a raincoat as an anti-inflammatory agent for chronic tonsillitis and tumors of the larynx, kidney disease, leukemia, to suppress the developmentand the spread of malignant tumors.
Folk medicines are widely used, based on the spores of Langermania, the closest relative of puffball mushrooms. These medicines effectively lower blood viscosity and high blood pressure. They are useful in diseases of the stomach, the entire digestive tract and angina pectoris, improve the immune system.
Mushrooms are also used for diseases of the genitourinary system and bladder cancer. Raincoat fungus spores are applied to bleeding skin surfaces to stop bleeding, relieve pain and improve skin regeneration, and heal malignant ulcers. Spore-based drugs are used to treat diseases of the lymphatic and endocrine systems, diabetes, adrenal dysfunction, tuberculosis, asthma and pleurisy.
Preparing alcohol tincture
To make tinctures, only two ingredients are required: raincoat mushrooms and alcohol. For the treatment of oncological diseases, a tincture prepared as follows is used.
One glass of spore powder is placed in a jar, add half a liter of vodka or 80% alcohol. The dishes are tightly covered with a lid and placed in a dark, cool and dry place for 25 days. After this time, the jar of tincture is thoroughly shaken, and then filtered. The resulting composition is taken 3 times a day before meals, 1 tablespoon.
Preparation of infusion on water
Not only tincture is prepared from spore powder, but also infusion. The second is different in that you need to use spore powder and water for it. For this they takeone dessert spoon of raincoat spores and pour it with a glass of water at a temperature of 70–80 ° C. After that, the mixture is infused in a glass or porcelain dish, covered with a lid, for an hour. Take an infusion of 100 ml in small sips before meals.
It helps with diseases of the endocrine and lymphatic systems, postpartum hemorrhage; used to prevent diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and genitourinary system.
Mushrooms puffballs are unique carriers of useful substances that help to cope with various serious ailments. In addition, from raincoats you can cook a large number of tasty and he althy dishes that will appeal to even the most demanding gourmets.
