Mushroom foraging

My anniversary(this sunday) falls at prime mushroom hunting time and after last years unexpected haul on an anniversary walk(about 1.5kg of hedgehog fungus) I am planning another anniversary trip.

Anybody been hunting and got anything worthwhile? Lets keep this about the legal edible kind!

My mum and dad had one pointed out by a friend (who knew about that sort of thing) a huge one last year - the size of a big plate and involved climbing trees to get at it. And I got them a mushroom picking book last year at xmas but it hasn't got used much.

Other than that, I mostly pick ones you don't want to talk about..

chicken of the woods, fried up with some chorizo, on toast

OH!

my parents have a wood they forage with some friends (french and italian) i had some boletus (penny buns) last autumn that were lovely. they did make themselves ill last year though :-) not because the shrooms are poisonous but they ate some that are not to be eaten with alcohol, a few hours was not long enough to wait for a glass of wine.

I went yesterday and came back with about 10 different species to identify. I think they were almost all poisonous, and a couple magic ones.

Id really just like to find some good eating ones, but I hear they only really grow on sheep/cow/horse fields.

I went yesterday and came back with about 10 different species to identify. I think they were almost all poisonous, and a couple magic ones.

Id really just like to find some good eating ones, but I hear they only really grow on sheep/cow/horse fields.

no. there's plenty in coppiced and broadleaf woodlands.

http://www.foragingguide.com/

A good guide.

no. there's plenty in coppiced and broadleaf woodlands.

Sorry, I meant specifcally field mushrooms.

http://www.foragingguide.com/

A good guide.

Thanks, looks great.

It seems like I have an edible bay bolete among my pickings.

Are you foraging near London. There was a forum mission last year to find some. I don't know where they ended up, being forrun and all..

I love the idea of mushroom foraging, but I kind of lose my bottle.

I just imagine myself smugly bringing home armfuls of delicious fungus and then writhing around with stomach cramps for seven hours in A & E.

Sounds like an awesome night. When?

• arsehole
  

Found loads of shaggy parasols in Wales a few weeks ago. Could have filled up a bin bag! Found some Chanterals (sp?) in the New forest last year too. Winston is a bit of an expert on this subject.

I love the idea of mushroom foraging, but I kind of lose my bottle.

I just imagine myself smugly bringing home armfuls of delicious fungus and then writhing around with stomach cramps for seven hours in A & E.

some of the poissens take longer than that to take effect...

I'm new to this too so paranoid. I've used at least 2 books + the internet to confirm my choice. One of the books is the fungi bible, by Roger something I think.

EDIT: I think this is it Roger Philips
[ame="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mushrooms-Roger-Phillips/dp/0330442376"]Mushrooms: Amazon.co.uk: Roger Phillips: Books[/ame]

I always wanted that book, but I was never sure if it was simply a duplication of the information on his site - http://www.rogersmushrooms.com/
I have two reference books - Peter Jordans field guide to edible mushrooms and Michael Jordans encyclopedia of the fungi of Britain and Europe.

I am not afraid of mushroom poisoning as I am extra careful and even if I am sure of a mushroom I would only think of picking it if I had seen many different specimens of it and I had had a chance to double check it's doubles so I know I haven't made a mistake.
I have certainly left more edible mushrooms in the field that I have picked, just because I wasn't sure.
I heard the saying - There are old mushroom hunters and there are bold mushroom hunters, but there are no old, bold mushroom hunters!

I few years ago found a very pretty looking mushroom and was convinced that it was an edible species. I chose not to eat it but to take it and research a little. As I couldn't be sure what it was, I eventually threw it. Yesterday I was browsing and I found it! - Mycena Pura - Poisonous!

I also found a whole load of tawny grisettes but as I am not an expert and I know the dangers of the amanita family I decided to leave them....just in case.

Last years hunt definately produced more poisonous mushrooms than edibles.
Here is a portion of my hedghogs.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/24039360@N04/4928308775/

And here some of the nasties
http://www.flickr.com/photos/24039360@N04/4928901670/in/photostream/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/24039360@N04/4928901106/in/photostream/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/24039360@N04/4928306485/in/photostream/

No death cap, but the panther would certainly do the job. The others are russula emetica(the sickener) and of course fly agaric.

So I got back from my weekend - all in all I got a reasonable haul - Mostly hedgehog fungus again though! Some chanterelles, amethyst deceivers, a few different boletes and a couple of horn of plenty.
There were thousands of the amethest deceivers, but I didn't want to waste my time picking them as I have never eaten them before and I wasn't sure if I would like them - now I think that is a mistake as I really like them!
All of these were found on the edges of woodland paths as my wife didn't want to walk slow enough for me to walk off the path!~

I found out later that I am not allowed to pick mushrooms in the forest where I was as it was part of the karkonsze national park - ooops

Are you foraging near London. There was a forum mission last year to find some. I don't know where they ended up, being forrun and all..

Wimbledon Common is a good place to start.

Just be careful out there!

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/aug/29/italian-mountain-mushrooms-claim-lives

Try the West Heath. But be sure to go after sunset

Here's my haul from Saturday:

Lots of boletes, including quite a few (and one massive) edulis, as well as badius and a scarletina; saffron milkcap, slippery jack, chanterelles (in the basket), various kinds of russula. We also got a shaggy inkcap (coprinus) but as they do it had deteriorated badly by the time we got it home.

Here's that big cep on its own:

Ha! That's a monster cep, great pic. It's all Fly Agaric round where I am, I never realised how enormous they can get some as big as dinner plates! Not bad toasted when you're on a Viking tip.

That is huge - unfortunately most of the ceps were gone where I went - either picked or deteriorated beyond edibility. I bought some fresh two weeks ago and made a fantastic soup and was hoping that I would get some more.

I'm unsure about russulas to honest - I don't know them very well at all so I am afraid to pick them. I know that they are particularly crumbly and you should avoid red ones, but I don't feel confident with them.
I'm sure there were plenty of yellow swamp russulas on my walk but I didn't have my big reference to check.

I was looking again at some of the ink caps - at my parents home there are huge numbers of coprinus micaceus, one of my books says they are inedible, however I have since found others that say they are edible - so now I'm not sure.

My trip was dominated by fly agaric. Probably two thirds of all the mushrooms I found were fly agaric.

Also found quite a few poisonous varieties, including some beautiful A.Muscaria, including one that was just bursting out of its volva, and (with a shudder) an A. Phalloides - this one the real thing, definitely not A. Citrina.

Anyone going out next weekend should steer well clear of these babies, which are in abundance at the moment:

Paxillus involutus, the brown roll-rim (yes, the rim of the cap rolls over underneath). They used to be regarded as edible but then they killed a mycologist who had eaten a few too many, and they are now regarded as poisonous. They look like they should be edible - but they're not.

That is huge - unfortunately most of the ceps were gone where I went - either picked or deteriorated beyond edibility. I bought some fresh two weeks ago and made a fantastic soup and was hoping that I would get some more.

I'm unsure about russulas to honest - I don't know them very well at all so I am afraid to pick them. I know that they are particularly crumbly and you should avoid red ones, but I don't feel confident with them.
I'm sure there were plenty of yellow swamp russulas on my walk but I didn't have my big reference to check.

I was looking again at some of the ink caps - at my parents home there are huge numbers of coprinus micaceus, one of my books says they are inedible, however I have since found others that say they are edible - so now I'm not sure.

There are so many different kinds of russulas I don't feel confident with them either (we didn't throw those into the pot that night). The milkcap is a russula, but it's so distinctive with its saffron-coloured flesh and milk that I feel safe eating it.

The shaggy ink cap is coprinus comatus, always grows by the side of roads or tracks. It's great for the pot if you get a young specimen and can get it home quickly enough. C. Micaceus is edible as well, but you don't see many of them round here. Avoid alcohol with all coprinus, of course.

I'm sure we haven't seen the last of the ceps this year. We just need a bit more rain in the week!