It’s mushroom season, it rained a week ago and now its warm again and so the little and not so little fungi are popping up all over the woods in our area. We have been eating Parasols, Penny Buns, and Black Trumpets (sadly no more Chanterelles or little foxes as they call them here!). Today we all went in to the woods to see if we can find the “Gypsy Cave” – again! – and when I say all , I mean all, Matchka the cat came too!
Ena leads Chucho – our neighbours dog who loves to come on our walks -, Matchka and the humans off through our village to find the cave!
Stonky gave us new directions to find the rocks with the cave and we set off with a new confidence. Matchka was understandably rather slow coming along the road past the madly barking dogs, but to our delight she went into the opposite field and then reappeared after the dogs house. That kitty has balls!
There follows a load of photos of mushrooms that Sunni has kindly identified for me, some are not named because they are too old, rotting or the stem is not visible to be easily identified from a photo. If you want to see such sights you would need to be here at the same time each year and be lucky!
Quite otherworldy these things are.A lonely young parasol mushroom patiently waiting to grow and open!A Parasol open and proud. This is pickable and edible, just brush/clean off the head and fry it with a bit of salt.These Panther Caps look good but are best left alone!These look like the Penny Bun mushrrom weve been eating but they are not! Avoid!Matchka is not interested in mushrooms she just wanted to run with the dogs but had trouble keeping up with them!These Birch Polypores (aka Birch Bracket or Razor Sharp!) fungi only grow on fallen Birch trees, they are no good for anything else.Its red, that means dangerous though pretty!Pretty little things, are best avoided as their name suggests… False Death Caps!These fungi are rotting away.So innocent looking.These colourful ritters are dying with green grace.These Lepiota Alba’s look seriously dodgy!Little mush, big mush!A young Brown Cap mushroom hiding amongst the leaves, not quite ready to pick yet.Matchka checks out the base of a tree.Not for us!These Turkey Tails are really small and cute and are used in natural healing as an immunity booster.A serious family of fungi.This photo doesnt do justice to the lovely yellow colour of these three.
We didn’t find the cave, that search will be resumed on another day!
