Mushroom pickers love honey mushrooms, because they are easy to collect and they grow in groups. Under the name of mushrooms "honey agaric" or "honey agaric" is meant a whole genus of eukaryotic organisms. And the name is given due to the fact that, with the exception of a small number of representatives of the family of these mushrooms, most grow on stumps. In total, there are 34 species.
general description
In mushrooms of this family, the hat can be from 2 to 17 centimeters in diameter. The colors of the hats are also very different, from yellow to brown. It is believed that the color is formed due to the substrate in which the fungus grows. If the cap has a convex shape in the mushroom, then its edges are usually lighter than the middle. They are often wavy.
The leg has the shape of a tube, dense and velvety, in diameter from 1 to 2 centimeters. In length can reach 7 centimeters.
The pulp has a white color and a dense structure, but with age it becomes thinner. The pulp of the legs is presented in the form of fibers.
The mushrooms are pleasant and tasty by smell and taste.
Benefit
The composition of these mushrooms is vitamins of groups B, E, C, and PP. There are useful trace elements: iron, phosphorus, zinc, potassium and others. They have fiber, proteins, amino acids and natural sugar.
Edible mushrooms mushrooms are recommended for use by vegetarians, as they make up for the lack of phosphorus and potassium due to the lack of protein food in the diet. For the same reason, it is recommended to use mushrooms for people who have problems with bone tissue and as a preventive product from the occurrence of this type of pathology.
Zinc, iron and magnesium have a beneficial effect on the hematopoiesis process, so they are suitable for people with anemia. Only in 100 grams of mushrooms is a daily dose of trace elements to maintain normal hemoglobin. These mushrooms have antimicrobial properties, according to antiseptic indicators they can even be compared with garlic.
Traditional medicine uses honey mushrooms to treat diseases of the thyroid gland and liver.
Contraindications
Honey mushrooms, despite the high content of nutrients, are not recommended for use in childhood, until the onset of 12 years. Pickled mushrooms are forbidden to eat in the presence of gastritis or stomach ulcers, as well as other problems with the gastrointestinal tract.
Places of growth
At their core, honey mushrooms are parasites and can grow in more than 200 species of shrubs and trees. Can even parasitize on potatoes and herbaceous plants. In the process of growth, fungi cause white rot on the vegetation.
Some mushrooms from this genus are saprophytes, that is, they grow exclusively on dead and rotted trees and stumps.
The mushroom grows almost everywhere, except for that part of the world where permafrost is. Prefers ravines and moist forests.
Varieties of fungus of our latitude
- Mushroom honey agaric autumn. It grows mainly on aspen, alder, elm and birch. This variety can be harvested already in late August and almost before the onset of winter, if the atmospheric temperature does not fall below + 10 degrees.
- The autumn look has quite impressive dimensions, the hat in diameter can reach 17 centimeters. After the appearance above the surface of the soil, the hat has a convex shape, later it straightens, becomes flat, the edges are wavy. The colors can be olive or dark brown. Rare scales can be observed, a lighter shade in relation to the color of the fungus.
- Spring. Prefers fallen trees and foliage. It grows best in pine and oak groves. It has a fairly elastic leg, the height of which can reach 9 centimeters. The color of the fungus is brick; during aging it becomes lighter. The pulp is usually white, but may have a slight yellow tint. Gathering starts from June to November.
- Winter. In different countries it is called differently, collibia, monks or enokitake. They grow best on dead wood, “love” park areas, forest edges, planting poplars and willows, gardens. The mushroom got its name because it bears fruit from autumn to spring, often it can be found under the snow.
- Summer It grows well in deciduous forests, bears fruit from mid-spring to November. It is better to look for it near rotten trees and stumps. Grows in large groups. The hat reaches 6 centimeters in diameter, if the weather is very damp, the brown color changes to a honey-yellow hue. The leg of the mushroom is quite high, up to 7 centimeters, dense and smooth.
- Fat footed. These mushrooms mushrooms parasitize only on heavily damaged trees, can grow on rotten plants and even on fallen leaves. A distinctive feature of the species is a thick and onion-like leg. The diameter of the cap is from 2 to 10 centimeters, the ring has a star-shaped appearance, with frequent tears. The middle of the cap has dry flakes that last until the fungus has completely dried. The flesh of the honey foot has a cheese flavor.
- Lugovoi. It grows almost everywhere, in meadows, fields and pastures. It can be found in the summer cottage and in the ravine. Gives a plentiful crop. Often grows in arc rows or even gives the so-called “witches” circles.
The legs of the mushrooms are thin and curved, with a height of up to 10 centimeters. When it is damp outside, the hat becomes sticky, acquires a light red tint or taw.
The flesh has a sweetish taste, with a slight clove or almond odor. You can harvest from May to October. It grows mainly in Japan and the Canary Islands, although it is found almost throughout Eurasia. It tolerates drought well enough.
When to collect?
Honey mushrooms in the forest grow from May to late autumn, naturally there are varieties like winter, which can be found in winter, but still a large crop can be harvested in the warm season.
Productivity largely depends on the weather in a particular area. Under the most favorable circumstances, up to 400 kg can be collected from one hectare. If the spring and summer are arid, then up to 100 kg is unlikely to be collected.
The peak of mushroom picking occurs in August and lasts until the beginning of winter, but provided that the temperature does not fall below +10 degrees. Most often, honey mushrooms appear in three layers, it takes about 15-20 days to develop one layer.
The collection can be made not only near old trees, but also in the meadow. If they grow on the edges, then not far in the ground, there are roots or stumps. Places of mushroom growth can be called stable, if at least once they were noticed in a certain area of the forest, then you can come here regularly. Simplifies the collection and the "love" of the mushroom for large companies, it is very rare to find a single mushroom.
Doubles
We can not say about poisonous mushrooms. False honey agaric has a botanical name and description, also called brick red false agaric. This is the most common type of inedible poisonous mushrooms, and it “knows how” to disguise itself very well as edible, therefore it often gets to the table of mushroom pickers. He has the greatest similarity with the autumn open-air, namely this species is most often pickled and canned.
How to distinguish?
First of all, so that the dangerous double of the mushroom - autumn honey agaric - does not get into the basket, you must pay attention to the color of the hat. The poisonous young mushroom has a hat of orange color, after maturation it acquires a brick-red color. The covering blanket is white with scraps along the edges of the cap, which looks very similar to the fringe.
The second feature of an inedible mushroom is that it does not have a dense ring on its leg. The leg itself is thin, not more than 1.5 centimeters, up to 5 centimeters high.
The third feature of the dangerous double of the mushroom is the autumn mushroom - it never grows in coniferous forests. Grows in well-ventilated and bright forests. Mandatory in deciduous, mainly on the stumps and arches of birches, lindens, aspen and alder.
Fruiting occurs at the end of the last month of summer and the beginning of September.
The smell of poisonous mushrooms is unpleasant. The color of the inner plate of the hat varies from yellow to olive-black, depending on the age of the fungus. In edible, it is always white-yellow or cream in color.
Inedible mushrooms have a bitter taste, although it is better not to bring the situation to the point of the test. Therefore, an inexperienced mushroom picker should select them very carefully so as not to be in a hospital bed.
In general, these are all signs of which mushrooms similar to honey mushrooms are suitable for consumption and which are not.
