[r-man]

Yes certainly if anyones keen. Am fairly busy this week but could do next Wednesday perhaps. The Longshaw circuit would make a good intro.

Brilliant! I'm up for that.

I checked out my local 2nd hand bookstore for mushroom books, though he didn't have any. Said he might have thrown them out as he had a mushroom allergy.

[grimer]

Wensty would be good for me. Do we get supplied with baskets or do we bring our own?

[Bonjoy]

 Have only got the one basket i'm afraid. Carrier bags are very unprofessional but will do at a push. It's also worth bringing a small knife, so you can cut the muddy bit off before bagging your fungi, it saves on a lot of cleaning later on. Pint at the Grouse after?

[webbo]

will you be gathering wild flowers as well.


maybe hoods and capes will be compulsory.watch out for wolves.

[enigma]

sign me up for the walk.  I'm going to go out today when i drive back home.  i've an old roger phillips guide, which is pretty small and useless for distinguishing all those ones that just look the same.  founf a shaggy ink cap on the road under stanage but it was too black to eat.

[enigma]

Just had a pork chop with a shaggy ink cap sauce.  stopped off at longshaw wood car park on the way home, found tons of mushrooms strait away of all kinds.  possibly some chantrelles.  don't know what most of them are so i'll post a pic if possible.

[Monolith]

A mushroom hunt sounds a fantastic idea. I've cast my eye across a few local spots but nothing of note just yet, certainly not in the edible stakes. Seems to have been some great success amongst many others though! That Puffball looks a bit too intimidating to pick, let alone eat.

[Bonjoy]

Enigma - Check the id carefully on the Chanterelles. I have found many False Chanterelles at Longshaw but never any of the real thing. False Chanterelles are more orange, thinner fleshed, less chunky and more funnel like. True Chanterelles have white flesh and a faint smell of apricots. However FCs aren't dangerous to eat so you don't need worry too much.

[Monolith]

A great book I found on our bookshelf:

A colour guide to familiar mushrooms and fungi

Published by Octopus Books 1977

ISBN - 0 7064 0448 3

Can probably be bought fairly cheap off Amazon or the like. I'm sure the Roger P one will be more comprehensive, but it's a nice old hardback book and would look good on your kitchen shelf.

In fact, check this link for best prices:

http://www.bookprice24.co.uk/isbn/0706404483

Bookprice 24 looks a fantastic site for comparing book prices.

[enigma]

[enigma]

[Bonjoy]

 As suspected they are False Chanterelles. There are various Russulas on there, including Blackish Purple Russula which is edible, Common Yellow Russula and possibly Russula cyanoxantha; an edible puffball and the Amanita in the middle is a Blusher (Amanita rubescens) which is edible, one of the previous pics has an Oak Milkcap. Can't really get an id for the other things from the pics alone.

[underground]

Just a little word of caution- the Blusher that Bonjoy refers to, looks very unlike the one in one of my books (Collins Field Guide) and comes withthe following caveat:

'There is a danger of confusing this fungus with the very poisonous A. pantherina (The Panther). A. rubescens varies enormously in appearance so can be hard to identify. Do not eat if you are in any doubt.'

That isn't intended in aany way as a dig at Bonjoy, merely because I looked in my book, and saw such a different mushroom to that one, and was concerned about the warning. In fact, I would hesitate to make any confirmed identifications by a one-plane photo, nor would I take any 'it's edible' statements as true, based on that photo....

I'm a bit nervous of eating fungi (with the exception of Psylocibin), perversely. I picked a mushroom in the raised bed outside our kitchen last year. It was Amanita virosa The Destroying Angel. Looked beautiful aswell. 

[Bonjoy]

 Yes, don't take my word as gospel and do always double check. However I am 110% that is a Blusher. I wouldn't have given such an unqualified statement regarding it's id if I wasn't absolutely certain I wasn't putting Enigma in the slightest danger, honestly. They are very common at Longshaw and i've seen many many in all stages of maturity, the telltale reddish brown staining which gives them their name is visible on the photo, I've also found plenty of Panther Caps and with experience it is simple to distinguish between them. Blushers do vary a lot but the one pictured is still very typical within the Blusher's phenotypic range.

[underground]

I wouldn't have given such an unqualified statement regarding it's id if I wasn't absolutely certain I wasn't putting Enigma in the slightest danger, honestly.

No, I didn't consider that you would for a minute. I actually think that some books can be slightly misleading and I'd rather get a second opinion such as yours as the pics can be a bit too good by comparison to what is visible in the field.

[Bonjoy]

Word

[Johnny Brown]

Just an idea - how's about learning to identify stuff before picking it? I appreciate these are very common species, but rare ones do occur in our area. In places like the New Forest controls have had to be implemented to stop the problems of over-picking and fuckwits wandering off with rare species. Shooters and fishermen don't kill everything that moves, and then take it all home to work out what to eat and what to throw in the bin. Some folk actually enjoy seeing fungi in-situ.

[enigma]

i didn't pick any that there weren't an absolute ton of.

[uptown]

Mmmmm, 2 kilo giant puffball found today in the Ashbourne area - very tasty.
I like to fry slices of it with a good coating of egg wash to give an inside out mushroom omelette.
Anyone else got any of these this year and if so what are your preferred recipes??

[lorentz]

Hmmm wassat...?

#Ears prickup#

Did someone mention psylo... cybin? What news from the fungi front... Anyone spotted any yet (and not picked them obviously! That would be illegal all of a sudden.)

Seriously though. Any been spotted out yet? Have been keeping an ear t'ground, meself, but may be a bit early/dry down my way yet.

[SA Chris]

A friend has allegedly got some growing in the back garden of his new house. No confirmed ID (yet).

On the subject of foraging, does anyone know of any good books on finding tasy stuff on the seashore? There's a pebble/boulder beach ten minutes walk from the back door, but all I ever see are winkles (which I don't like much).

[Falling Down]

Chris - You can't go wrong with Hugh Fearnley's first book 'A Cook on the Wild Side'.  There's a whole section on seashore foraging for shellfish etc.  I'm not sure if it's still in print though...  If not, I'll photocopy the relevant sections for you when our kitched is finished and I can get to the recipe books again (they are in boxes at the moment).

[Bonjoy]

Mmmmm, 2 kilo giant puffball found today in the Ashbourne area - very tasty.
I like to fry slices of it with a good coating of egg wash to give an inside out mushroom omelette.
Anyone else got any of these this year and if so what are your preferred recipes??

Yeah, I found a couple near Keithley, just off the main road on the way back from Malham. As seen in picture in the first post of this thread.

[SA Chris]

Cheers FD, would be good.

Had a good late afternoon surf session at Sandend yesterday. Great to be in the water, but feeling lack of fitness.

[Monolith]

Right, I took the Food For Free guide out with me this morning and found these. Some of them I have positively identified, but others not. I'm sure I got a Chanterelle and a Cep.



Any identification notes appreciated. Also I must ask, would it matter if I have stored all the mushrooms in the same container? I.e would poisonous shrooms affect the edible ones?

Will post some individual pics later. All in all a good practice pick!