We will try to ID your mushrooms here

[mrsflibble]

I found this mushroom in a wood which is predominantly oak... it was growing out of leaf matter in shady woodland, in south essex, in september (today in fact!). has white stalk, white cap with dark brown "feathers" on, greyish brown gills and a slight reddish tinge when cut or bruised. this pic is of a small one out of the group I found- it's about 10-15cms high.
smells like a mushroom (i.e. not of ammonia etc)...
and I just can't identify it myself.


oh, btw, this is my first post- I'm an avid forrager and love cooking and eating my wild food findings. I'm beginning young teaching my daughter to forrage, what's edible, whats not etc. she's 6 months old and so far she really likes brambles, hawthorn buds and daisies lolz!

[The Chili Monster]

Hi, Mrsflibble! :helloooo:

[hedgewizard]

Hi and wlecome! That looks like a shaggy parasol to me, which is edible if a bit bland. The big caps once open fully make good fritters cut into four and sipped in beer batter. I like them with chilli dipping sauce, but that's just me! They start off looking like that, then they start to open up;





Here's a link if you're interested. One warning - shaggy parasols can cause gastric upset in a minority of people, particularly if undercooked, so don't go too nuts on the first tasting. Remember though, they'll likely come up in the same place next year. Happy harvesting!

[mrsflibble]

Thanks! as we're only fairly sure, should I do the old SAS trick of having a small taste, then waiting an hour or so to see if I get ill or die...?!

[Cab]

Excuse me for jumping in, but Mrs Flibble, are the gills of that mushroom not kind of brownish or pinkish?

If so, then it isn't a shaggy parasol, more liley an Agaricus of some sort in that case I think.

Tell us about your gills!

[mrsflibble]

they're light brownish... a little pinker than beige...

[hedgewizard]

Hmm... doesn't look right for any of the agaricus that I can find except *possibly* langei (which is also edible), but it looks way too shaggy for that. Good observation though Cab! Shaggy parasol gills start off creamy but can go beige (more so in older ones), unlike the ordinary parasol which always stays white. Agaricus mushrooms do tend to have more solid stems though, and that one looks hollow in the photo. Shaggy parasols do the reddish bruising trick too, just like an agaricus.

Mrs F, do a spore print to make sure - it should be white. And yes, the first time you encounter a new mushy always eat a small amount first (and keep a specimen untouched in case you need to visit A&E!) especially bearing in mind what I said about parasols. Once you know a species though, it's much easier to recognise it again.

[Cab]

Could be a shaggy parasol, but the stipe is unusual and the gills are oddly dark.

Many Agaricus species are very variable, but the red staining is a clue. Hasn't stained VERY red in those pictures, so unless it went redder then I'd say it could be A. porphyrocephalus, which goes a sort of flesh colour (at least some speciemens do). Isn't quite right for A. sylvaticus or A. haemorrhoidarius.

[mrsflibble]

thanks, I'll do a print and let you know.

[hedgewizard]

Way too big for porphyrocephalus, methinks. Seeing some mature specimens might help, but the spore print will narrow things down. It might even be a young Prince, although again I'd expect the gills to be lighter...

[random]

I always liked Rogers Mushrooms for trying to identify anything I found while 'shrooming - and now it's free to access. If anything it offers to many choices

[mrsflibble]

I tried rogers lolz!

[FluffyMuppet]

Hi guys,

I have white mushrooms growing in my raised beds. I did add some mushroom compost to them a couple of years ago (although they're in two beds and I don't remember whether I added the compost to both). It's also possible that I chucked the remains of one of those home mushroom kits on there at some point.

At the moment they're completely white and look just like the ones that grew (albeit rather grudgingly) in my mushroom kit. I'm fairly convinced they're standard button mushrooms, but could they be something else?

I don't know anything about wild mushrooms and generally stick to button ones becasuse I don't like anything too exotic, so I'm wary about trying them unless I can identify them 100%.

Thanks
Muppet

[hedgewizard]

Quite possible - the drop in temp can trigger fruiting. Some photos would be helpful - read the guidance in the posts at the top of the thread.

Assuming your kit was a standard agaricus bisporus one, you already know what to look for - no volva, pinkish gills, solid stem, etc etc.

[Tay]

As it was a lovely afternoon here today, I went wandering through neighbouring fields hunting for mushrooms. I found plenty of fairy ring mushrooms, and plenty of another which I cannot identify. I think that I am reasonably sure that what I have found won't kill me; but I won't eat them anyhow until I know better. There are many more growing, so if they are good, I can get more when I know that they are safe.

They are growing on the ground in sheep fields with short-ish grass. There is no volval bag, and they are mainly white in colour with white gills. The mushroom caps have a 'bobble' (umbo?) and no real smell. Both the stems and cap diameters are under 10cm and the stems have veils. I have posted the pictures below.

Whilst in the same field photographing butterflies, I looked up at a tree/hedgerow and saw some gigantic mushrooms. I am almost positive that they are parasols given their size (30cm/1 foot tall), but would be grateful for verification. Photos posted below.