I came across this really inspiring lecture by Mycologist, Paul Stamet. He discusses how mushrooms, and more specifically mycelium, can be used to fight most of the world’s major problems. I love Paul Stamet. He’s such a wonderful, insightful and imaginative scientist, but also an incredibly passionate and akward nerd.
Lately, I’ve been trying to take advantage of the last few mushroom-studying days that are left before the snow falls; and, up here in the north of Sweden, that will be sooner than later. I’m in the process of categorizing, studying and identifying hundreds of mushrooms that I’ve photographed the past week.
On walk in the park with my son on Saturday, I happened to catch this attractive mushroom. Maybe that’s the wrong word. I thought it’s Sadako hair-like cap was kind of terrifying. I at first assumed it was Megacollybia platyphylla or strecknagelskivling, but it turns out it was the Deer Shield or hjortskölding in Swedish (Pluteus atricapillus or Pluteus cervinus). M.platyphylla has wider-spaced, white gills and white to creamy spores and the base of it’s foot is loaded with white mycelium, whereas the Deer Shield’s tighter, free-sitting gills are initially white but turn pinkish when the pink to brownish spores ripen. The Dear Shield is also edible, but m.platyphylla is not.
Yesterday I also spotted this Pine-spike mushroom called rabarbersvamp in Swedish (Chroogomphus rutilus). I love the name Chroogomphus. It’s as unique a name as the mushroom itself. At first I was a little concerned that it might be the Deadly Webcap or toppig giftspindling in Swedish (Cortinarius rubellus). A tiny sliver of the Deadly Webcap is enough to kill a full-grown human. So please be careful out there. You can tell the difference between a Pine-spike and a Deathly Webcap upon close inspection, but some people are either too confident or two careless when picking. The Pine-spike’s tell-tale signature is it’s unique gills that run down the stem. The Pine-spike is edible but not very tasty. A good rule of thumb for picking mushrooms is to avoid brown-capped mushrooms with brown gills. Almost all of them are poisonous or inedible.
I’m so excited! Today, just outside Östersund, I spotted the rare and beautiful Golden Cap or gyllenskivling (Phaeoleopiota aurea) in Swedish. In fact I spotted hundreds of them. They used to be considered edible and quite delicious, but in recent studies there have been mild poisoning cases.
On a walk this morning I found some tiny little Wood blewits, or blåmusseron in Swedish (Lepista nuda). These mushrooms are edible if cooked, but can cause allergic reactions in some sensitive people if particularly when eaten raw.
Today I spotted some Girdled Webcaps or trappspindling in Swedish (Cortinarius trivialis) under a large, leafy tree in a forested park near central Östersund. Such a beautiful mushroom, but unfortunately not edible, but not poisonous either.
