Description of red fly agaric
Amanita muscaria is a representative of lamellar mushrooms. It has a red cap covered with white spots. This is a poisonous mushroom, however, it has medicinal properties: relieves tumors, inflammation.
Description of red fly agaric
Description of appearance
Description of the hat
Amanita muscaria is very bright, outwardly it is difficult to confuse it with other mushrooms.
A young mushroom fly agaric has a red spherical cap, which with growth takes on a flat or concave shape. Its diameter can be 8-20 cm. Sometimes there are representatives with a yellow orange or white cap. The extreme parts of it are striped (there are noticeable scars - these are the plates of the hymenophore that shine through). The white dots on the cap have a sticky secret.
Irina Selyutina (Biologist):
The spores of the red fly agaric ripen immediately after the ring is separated, or, to be more precise, the private coverlet from the edge of the cap. The separation of spores from basidia occurs most abundantly 2-3 days after maturation and lasts 4-5, and sometimes even 6 days. A mushroom head with a diameter of 7 cm is capable of forming 575 million spores.
The plates often located on the lower side of the cap are 6 to 12 mm wide, free, white or cream-colored, are united by intermediate, smaller plates.
Leg description
The leg is white or yellow, its height is usually 8-20 cm, with a thickness of 1-3.5 cm. The shape is cylindrical, has a thickening - "tuber" at the base. The remains of the common bedspread are adherent to the base of the leg and in their appearance resemble white or yellowish warts, which are located in several concentric rows.
Young specimens have a solid leg inside, when it grows, it gradually becomes hollow.
Description of the pulp
The pulp is white. Its color does not change with the age of the fungus. When cut, the color remains unchanged. The taste is sweetish, the aroma is practically inaudible.
Views
There are several species similar to the red fly agaric, they differ in color and habitat:
- Caesar (Caesarean) mushroom: it is an edible species. Many people confuse the red poisonous fly agaric with this species. This species grows in Transcarpathia, Crimea and even in the Caucasus. Caesar mushrooms grow in the Mediterranean countries. The caesarean fly agaric (the popular name for this particular species) does not have flakes on the cap, and its plates and stem have a yellow-gold hue.
- Amanita yellow-orange: the species has a dense white flesh, an even, cylindrical leg. The habitat of this species is the coniferous and deciduous forests of North America.
- Amanita muscaria, red, white (Amanita muscaria var.alba): rarely found in nature. He has a white cap that is strewn with white flakes. In young individuals, it is in the form of a dome, after, as it grows, it becomes absolutely flat. The leg has a white smooth ring. The surface of the leg under it consists of fibers, in the upper part of it, above the ring - smooth.The plates on the inner side of the cap are frequent, the flesh is dense in structure, and white in shade. These mushrooms grow in forests, like ordinary fly agarics.
- Amanita muscaria, red, yellow (Amanita muscaria var.formosa): an American variety often referred to as the yellow-orange fly agaric. At a young age, the cap is spherical, in mature specimens it is almost flat, on which there are flocculent remnants of a common bedspread.
Irina Selyutina (Biologist):
Amanita muscaria is also known in nature. Although it is clearly distinguished as a separate species from the red fly agaric, the corresponding Latin names are still preserved for it, where it is called "variation", for example, Amanita muscaria var. umbrina, i.e. brown fly agaric variation of red. He has a brown hat with many white warts, a yellowish leg. This species is widespread in northern and middle latitudes.
Attention! Amanita muscaria red white form and white toadstool, or smelly fly agaric, are two completely different organisms.
Beneficial features
Amanita muscaria, according to the description, contains poison, but the hornbeam has useful properties. The medicinal properties of the red fly agaric are as follows: analgesic, stimulating and anti-cancer effects. It is also used as an antispasmodic agent, to reduce pain in the event of a tumor, rheumatism.
Medicines from it are prescribed for the treatment of tuberculosis, spasms in the intestines. These funds fill with strength and energy.
Contraindications
Amanita tincture should not be consumed internally
The most important contraindication to the use of red mushroom tincture, the use of other medications based on it, is pregnancy and breastfeeding, age up to 18 years. Treatment with fly agaric tincture should not be carried out orally, because this can lead to poisoning. In practice, products for external use are more often used.
The toxic effect is provoked by the alkaloid muscarine, which is part of the pulp. The lethal dosage of muscarine is 3-5 mg. It negatively affects the human parasympathetic nervous system.
The composition of raw individuals of the muscarine alkaloid is 0.0002%, so there will be no severe poisoning. In cooking (when boiled), muscarine does not break down. If you boil the fly agaric 2-3 times and drain the broth, it will lose its toxic properties. In the dried form, very little muscarine remains in the composition.
When using drugs (tinctures, ointments), you should:
- take into account the dosage;
- do not forget about hygiene (it is imperative to wash your hands well with soap after contact), and also work with gloves;
- avoid getting the tincture on the skin where there is damage (wounds, scratches).
Consider. The use of these drugs is contraindicated for the treatment of children.
If a person has already been poisoned, first he must drink up to 1 liter of water, then he needs to provoke vomiting in order to cleanse the stomach. Then they take a laxative or give an enema. A visit to the doctor and further treatment procedures in this case are required. If you take up to 15 drops of belladonna tincture (belladonna), this will help stabilize the general condition of a person who has received a poisoning of the body, but will not cancel a visit to a medical institution.
Application
Despite all its danger due to the presence of toxins, the red fly agaric has found its "place" in human life.
In the fight against insect pests
Helps get rid of harmful insects: its whole fruit body or the cap must be cut into small pieces, poured over with milk or just water. Leave in a container and put on a windowsill. Put filter paper inside, it must necessarily cover the edges of the container. If the solution is dry, it should be replaced with fresh one.
It is used to destroy bedbugs: to do this, boil the mushroom "into porridge" and smear with the resulting mass all the cracks where there are bedbug nests. You can also use mushroom juice for this.
In cooking
Almost all types of fly agaric are eaten. Exclude only poisonous and those that have an unpleasant odor. Today, many cafes and restaurants in several countries of the world order dried mushrooms and those that have undergone heat treatment.
Poisons and hallucinogens decompose at high temperatures or come out during boiling. Therefore, if you eat a little mushroom, there will be no consequences.
In medicine
Medicines have been prepared from this mushroom for many years, i.e. the red fly agaric is used in folk medicine. The most popular use is for pain relief. The mushroom contains not only the alkaloid muscarine, but also muscinol, ibotenic acid, choline, trimethylamine, muscafurin. In the right ratio, the substance really has an anti-inflammatory and analgesic effect on the human body.
In addition, more and more people turn to it not only in traditional medicine, but also in scientific medicine. Studies have shown that the broth, ointments and juice from the fly agaric heal well wounds that are obtained as a result of X-ray irradiation. They are also a means of preventing dermatitis.
Growing methods
Amanita muscaria grows on the edges of forests and in the wilds of swamps. It must be borne in mind that it grows on acidic soils, and forms mycorrhiza mainly with spruces and birches.
To grow this type of mushroom, a special soil is prepared, spores are sown, and then watered with water. It is imperative to control the humidity and air temperature around the "fly agaric" beds. Growing an amanita on your own is not easy, and only after several years of practice it will turn out right.
Conclusion
Amanita has a memorable color. It is a poisonous mushroom, but a small amount in food will not be harmful. However, hitting about 15 caps can be lethal for an adult.
