Of course, everything that is written here is not for an experienced mushroom picker. He knows exactly where the false honey agaric is, and where the usual, edible one. But if you are going on a "quiet hunt" for the first time, read the text of this article more carefully. This will save you from mistakes that can ruin your well-being.
When picking mushrooms, it is very easy to make a mistake and collect false mushrooms in the basket. This is all the more easy to do, since they grow in the same place as edible ones - on old stumps or right on tree trunks. There is a lot in common in the description of false and ordinary mushrooms, and sometimes they grow mixed.
Insidious honey mushrooms - which are false and which are ordinary? False mushrooms are mushrooms that look like edible mushrooms, among them there are several poisonous varieties, and there are non-poisonous, but not distinguished by any culinary value.
But before giving a description of false mushrooms, for a better orientation on the subject of conversation, let's talk about ordinary mushrooms - summer and autumn mushrooms.
Honey mushrooms
On ravines, near swamps, in damp forest thickets and on stumps, you can often find mushrooms growing in groups. These mushrooms are especiallypopular with Russian mushroom pickers.
They do not exceed 15 cm in height, they grow mainly on stumps. The diameter of the cap of an adult mushroom is not more than 10 cm, the shape of the cap is from a hemisphere to a flat umbrella (in adult specimens). The color of the hats is varied and can vary from beige to reddish-yellow.
With age, the color of the legs darkens. On the leg, the honey agaric has a ring in the form of a skirt. In adults, the skirt has tears and seems to hang in tatters.
Mushrooms love wet places and easily collect moisture, so mucus can appear on the cap and on the body of the mushroom. After breaking the mushroom, you will see that the flesh of the mushroom is light, with a yellowish or creamy tint, you will feel a pleasant smell of fresh wood.
Mushrooms are tasty and he althy: their pulp is rich in amino acids, vegetable proteins and fiber.
There are summer, spring, autumn and even winter varieties of honey mushrooms. It grows best in the wet season - spring and autumn. Especially popular among mushroom pickers is autumn mushroom, which is also called "real mushroom", "autumn", "Assumption mushroom".
In a coniferous forest in a mountainous area you will meet a summer honey agaric. This is due to the fact that forests near the mountains are more humid, and this mushroom, as mentioned above, loves moisture.
As for deciduous forests, especially if they are humid forests, honey mushrooms will be found there much more often, and of all kinds.
Mushroom is a parasitic fungus. It settles not only on rotting stumps, but also on living sick people, withdamaged wood trees, such as birch and linden. Occasionally it can also be found on oaks with aspens.
As for the general description of false mushrooms, it does not exist. They, as already mentioned, have several similar types.
What is the difference between honey mushrooms and false mushrooms?
Firstly, the main thing to pay attention to when collecting mushrooms is the presence of a ring with a skirt located under the hat. False mushrooms either do not have such rings, or there is only a certain strip on the stem.
Secondly, it is believed that the color of such a mushroom is less bright than the color of the usual one. The plates under the hat of the false honey agaric are painted in yellow, greenish or dirty brown colors. When cut, they quickly darken. But the plates of mushrooms, which are considered edible, are cream or light brown in color.
Thirdly, if you nevertheless brought the dubious mushrooms home and already threw them into the pan to boil, put the onion there too. Did the onion in the mushroom broth darken? This is another way to identify a false honey agaric. In a decoction of edible mushrooms, onions will not change color.
Finally, if you feel bitterness while tasting, discard the dish as a whole. It is very possible that an inedible, or even poisonous specimen did get into the basket.
It should be borne in mind that false mushrooms are more common among autumn mushrooms.
False honeysuckle sulfur-yellow
False honey agaric sulfur-yellow - the most famous of the false mushrooms. These mushrooms are found in large groups on rotten stumps, on the ground near them, at the roots of both deciduous and coniferous trees, as well asclearings.
The diameter of the cap is within 6-7 cm. The cap is in shape from bell-shaped to flat, in color from yellowish to red-brown. Has no scales.
The color of the cap plates can be yellow, gray or even black with an olive tint.
At the break, the mushroom is of an indefinite yellowish color. The color of the spore powder is dark brown.
The pulp is bitter in taste, has an unpleasant odor.
The leg is hollow, straight or curved, light yellow, about 10 cm long, more than half a centimeter thick.
On the question of whether false mushrooms are poisonous or not, in relation to the sulfur-yellow false honey mushroom, you should answer in the affirmative.
Symptoms of sulphur-yellow poisoning
In the period from an hour to six people who have eaten these mushrooms will feel lethargy, nausea, and vomiting. Diarrhea and abdominal pain are also cited as symptoms of sulphur-yellow honey agaric poisoning. The victim may lose consciousness.
Poisoning with this mushroom is likely to adversely affect the functioning of the liver and stomach, kidneys and even the cardiovascular system. Of course, the elderly and children under 3 years of age are primarily at risk. But everyone who accidentally got a false sulfur-yellow honey agaric into their food should immediately seek medical help.
Fringed Galerina
Summer mushroom, which is delicious both fried and pickled, and as a filling for a pie, when harvested, it is easy to confuse with its poisonous counterpart - bordered galerina. This mushroom is consideredespecially dangerous - because it contains the same toxins as the pale grebe.
As you know, the amatoxins contained in these mushrooms are involved in most cases of human poisoning with mushroom poison.
Distinguishing Galerina and edible honey agaric is quite difficult - although Galerina is smaller, it even has a small ring on the leg (which is found, however, only in young specimens).
The diameter of the hat, marked in the center with a slight bulge, is from 3 to 5 cm.
The color of the cap changes depending on the humidity of the air, in the center of the cap it can be reddish-red or reddish-brown, paler towards the edges. As the concentration of moisture in the air decreases, the color of the fungus becomes duller.
Pulp is brownish to white, almost odorless, tastes like flour.
This mushroom is found all summer and autumn - if it is warm, then until November. This double honey agaric can grow not only in "families", sometimes galerinas live alone.
More often Galerina grows near coniferous trees, but can also be found on deciduous trees. Therefore, it is not recommended to collect summer mushrooms in coniferous forests - the risk of catching a poisonous mushroom by mistake is too great. Or ask an experienced mushroom picker to accompany you.
Poisoning with bordered galerina
Eating galerina bordered raw may cause liver dysfunction, which, if not taken urgently, may be accompanied by the above symptoms, even death.
And this mushroomcontains slow-acting toxins, so the poisoning seems to be "protracted" - its signs appear only on the second day after ingestion of the fungus. By the end of the third day, the condition will improve slightly, but then it will symptomatically approach jaundice.
The risk of bringing the galerina from the forest is quite high - today it is even more common than the pale grebe.
Scales
Scales are dotted with scales, by which they are easy to distinguish from honey mushrooms. By the way, some of the mushrooms may also have scales, but only young specimens. On the surface of the legs of the scales there is a not particularly noticeable ring characteristic of mushrooms, which is why these mushrooms are still confused with honey mushrooms.
The most important thing is that the flakes are not poisonous. However, the nutritional value and edibility of most of them is questionable.
Below in the photo is a golden flake, which is otherwise called the royal honey agaric. These mushrooms are the closest in taste to mushrooms, although not all mushroom pickers collect them.
In appearance, if this is a honey agaric, then its larger version. The diameter of the cap is at least 20 cm, the height of the whole mushroom is the same.
These golden scales are covered with scales of a shade darker, closer to brown.
Grow on stumps, trunks of living trees and deadwood one at a time, rarely in groups. They are mainly inhabitants of deciduous forests. They appear in abundance before the cold snap.
Carbon-loving (cinder) flake - another of the twins of the common honey agaric.
This mushroom does not contain toxins, but is not edible eitherconsidered as not particularly nutritious. Used as a so-called conditionally edible for pickling and second courses.
You can distinguish coal-loving flakes by the color of the cap - it is bright yellow or orange, there are red plates under it.
This flake grows, as a rule, single specimens in mixed forests in summer and autumn.
Another kind of flake - fiery - has a red-rusty cap color. On the surface of the fungus are bright yellow scales. The cap can be up to seven centimeters in diameter.
Inhabits coniferous stumps both singly and in groups.
Not poisonous, but tastes bitter, the flesh is tough, which is why it can only be considered an edible mushroom.
Scales are low in calories, contain some vitamins, calcium and phosphorus compounds, and dietary fiber.
Bitterness can be removed by pre-treatment. It is enough to boil golden flakes for 15-20 minutes, others need to be soaked in cold water for at least a day.
Yellow-Red Row
However, if you meet a group of mushrooms with only red or reddish hats, then this is most likely not a mushroom, but a yellow-red row (it is also called a red mushroom).
Ryadnovka lives in pine forests. It is considered conditionally edible because it tastes bitter and requires pre-boiling.
Conclusion
It should be noted that during the cooking processfalse mushrooms will not lose their poisonous properties, their poisons will not be destroyed, and even an increase in toxicity will occur during canning and storage. Therefore, if you have doubts about the edibility of certain mushrooms, it is better to get rid of them, and not experiment on your he alth.
In addition, it is worth noting that ordinary mushrooms, like most agaric mushrooms, easily absorb poisonous substances around them. So, if an edible mushroom grows surrounded by poisonous mushrooms (for example, sulfur-yellow mushrooms or galerins), it is better not to eat the mushroom itself. In the same way, you should not pick mushrooms near industrial facilities, on the outskirts of large cities, near power lines.
And if it is a conditionally edible mushroom, it must be subjected to heat treatment.
Of the advice given by experienced mushroom pickers, one can most often hear the following: become an adherent of one forest. Or find a certain place in the forest where honey mushrooms live in families. With careful, without damaging the mycelium, picking mushrooms, you can regularly return home with a harvest.
