Description of summer mushroom
Summer honey agaric is an edible representative of the mushroom world and belongs to the Stropharia family. In the forests, he is met from the beginning of June to October inclusive. It often appears on stumps, which explains its name. It grows in clusters, it is almost impossible to find a free-standing mushroom.
Description of summer mushroom
Description of the appearance of the mushroom
Summer mushroom has a cap from 2 to 8 cm in diameter with downward-looking edges. In its center there is a tubercle, which is lighter in color than the rest of the cap surface. She herself is yellow-brown in color, covered with circular light stripes. In rainy weather, the hat may show through. The pulp is not dense, lighter than the mushroom itself, with a pronounced smell and taste. The plates are light yellow in color, and as they move to the stem to which they grow, they become rusty-brown. The hymenophore is dark brown due to the many spores covering the surface of the plates. Very often they fall on the caps below the fungi located in the colony, and because of this it may seem that they are rotten.
The height of the leg is 5-7 cm, and its diameter does not exceed 0.5 cm.On its surface you can see a ring of the same color as the cap itself, sometimes it disappears, but a characteristic trace remains in its place, below it the color of the mushroom leg is more dark. The leg follows the shape of a cylinder, has a bend, its flesh is more rigid than that of the cap, so it is rarely eaten.
The fruiting period begins in summer and ends closer to mid-autumn. Summer honey agaric, in addition to habitual habitats such as stumps, is often found on rotten wood of fallen trees, damp logs, or next to a birch. It practically never happens near conifers. Yields peak in July-August. Collecting them is easy, with a combination of favorable conditions from one place they immediately get half a basket of delicious summer mushrooms.
Summer mushrooms, like autumn mushrooms, are distinguished by a pronounced mushroom aroma and delicate pulp, they are safely added to food without preliminary processing. This type is suitable for adding to soups, frying, stewing, drying. The main thing is to remember that it quickly deteriorates and cannot be stored for a long time, after collecting it must be used immediately.
Types of honey agarics
This group includes many species. Among them, the most popular are summer and autumn mushrooms. When collecting them, you must be extremely careful, since they have dangerous counterparts, such as false mushrooms and a bordered gallery, so you need to know the description of useful mushrooms.
Autumn honey agaric
This honey fungus is an edible species. It differs in a wider cap, up to 10-15 cm in diameter, which has the same tubercle in the center as in almost all honey agarics, the color is yellow-brown. Its entire surface is covered with small brown scales, there are no circles on it. The leg is larger than that of the summer, and grows up to 6-12 cm in height and up to 2 cm in diameter.It also has the shape of a cylinder, in the upper part of it you can see a white ring, as it approaches the soil, it changes color from beige to brown. At the base, the pedicle may be slightly widened, but this is not swelling. The pulp is tough. The hymenophore is lamellar, white. The plates are sparsely arranged.
Irina Selyutina (Biologist):
What we habitually call the autumn mushroom species, in fact, includes two independent, but outwardly almost identical species, which can only be distinguished by specialists. These are the following species: honey autumn honey and northern autumn honey.
The characteristic “skirt” on the leg is the remnants of a thick, dense blanket that feels like felt and is covered with scales that turn brown or brown with age. These mushrooms have no Volvo.
It is believed that the color of the cap is largely determined by the substrate on which the fungus lives. So, honey mushrooms growing on poplar, mulberry or white acacia have a honey-yellow hat, on conifers - reddish-brown, on oaks - brown.
Autumn honey fungus is a parasite of about 200 species of tree species and has the ability to settle with the help of its cord-like mycelium strands, up to several meters long. They can be seen under the bark of the affected plant if a section of the bark is removed.
Autumn representatives are often found on birches, growing from late August to October.
Winter mushroom
Another edible species. The hat is up to 8-12 cm in diameter, smooth, in contrast to the summer mushroom, light brown, sometimes even honey, with light edges. In young specimens, it is convex, but in old specimens it acquires a flat shape. The bump in the center is absent, but the surface itself becomes darker. Over time, the mushroom becomes covered with brown spots. The leg is rigid, sometimes 4-8 cm high and up to 0.8 cm in diameter. There is no ring on it (i.e. the remains of a private veil), its upper part is the same color as the cap. Spore powder is white. Under good external conditions, it bears fruit all winter. Belongs to category 4, preliminary heat treatment is required before eating. Although the pulp is watery, it has a pleasant aroma and taste.
Honey mushroom brick-red
It is often called brick-red pseudo-foam or brick-red hypholoma. It differs from the summer mushroom in the color of its cap, which is brick-red, red-brown or yellow-brown. Its shape is rounded-convex, there is no tubercle in the center, but in its place the color acquires a darker color. The diameter of the cap is usually 4-8 cm, although in some specimens it can reach 12 cm in diameter. White flakes can be seen around the edges of the cap - the remains of a private bedspread. The leg is thicker, up to 1.5 cm in diameter, without bends, light yellow on top and darkens as it approaches the soil surface. The hymenophore is lamellar, characterized by a dark brown color with purple hues.
Meadow honey
Meadow mushrooms grow in groups
This is another edible type of mushroom, it is also often called the meadow non-fungus, or simply meadow, or clove mushroom. The cap is small, only 2-5 cm in diameter, conical in shape, but over time it becomes prostrate with a pronounced tubercle in the center. Has a yellow-brown color. The hymenophore is lamellar, the plates are rarely located, but they are wide enough. The pulp is pleasant to the taste, has a pronounced specific smell, hence the name "clove mushroom". Often, meadow mushroom is found in meadows and glades, which is what caused its specific name. Meadow mushrooms grow in groups, forming circular clusters.
False Foam sulfur yellow
This is a dangerous poisonous species that is very often confused with the summer. It is distinguished from the usual honey fungus by its light yellow color and unpleasant odor. Its bell-shaped hat ranges from 2 to 7 cm in diameter.The leg grows up to 10 cm in height and up to 0.5 cm in diameter, its color is similar to the cap. The flesh is whitish in color, with pronounced bitterness and a pungent odor. The plates grow to the stem, have a gray-yellow color at the edges, and greenish or black-olive closer to the stem. The hymenophore is lamellar, the plates are thin, often located. In young mushrooms, the plates are sulfur-yellow, in older ones - black-olive. The spore powder has a chocolate brown color.
Beneficial features
Summer honey agaric contains useful substances that are needed by the human body. Among them are substances such as proteins, fats, carbohydrates, micro- and macroelements (zinc, copper, iron and others), polysaccharides, etc. The calorie content of mushrooms is only 20-30 kcal per 100 g, which allows them to be included in various diets.
Mushrooms help with constipation, providing a laxative effect, kill pathogenic bacteria, strengthen immunity, fight inflammatory processes, help get rid of intestinal infections, and improve metabolic processes.
Contraindications
- Because summer mushrooms (talkers) contain many active substances, then they should not be used by children at an early age. A small amount can be given to those who are already 7 years old.
- Pregnant and lactating women should also avoid abusing this product.
- In case of diseases of the gastric tract and intestines, it is strictly forbidden to eat summer mushrooms, because this leads to unforeseen complications.
- Refrain from dishes with mushrooms should be with diarrhea.
Application
Summer honey agaric has various useful properties that could not go unnoticed. People began to study them a long time ago and find their application in various areas of their lives and activities.
In cooking
The use of this species in cooking is extensive. Honey mushrooms make excellent soups, they are added to second courses, pies and casseroles are baked with them.
Irina Selyutina (Biologist):
Summer honey agaric belongs to the 3-4 category of edibility. It is prepared without preliminary boiling, only it is well cleaned of forest debris and washed. If, for some reason, honey mushrooms cannot be processed immediately upon returning from the forest, they can be sorted out, cleaned of debris, folded into a paper bag and placed in a cold place. However, they cannot be stored for more than 1.5 days.
These mushrooms are also great for drying. Dry summer mushrooms can be used to make a flavoring powder for soups and sauces.
Many people prefer to pickle and preserve these mushrooms, make pickles from them. In the summer, they are often consumed fresh, thereby preserving all their useful properties as much as possible.
In medicine
As mentioned above, this mushroom is a natural antibiotic and helps in the fight against viruses and bacteria. It contains thiamine, or vitamin B1, which plays an important role in the metabolism of carbohydrates and certain amino acids in the human body, and is also important for the functioning of the nervous system. A large number of ions of mineral substances (iron, potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, sodium) help to improve well-being and restore the electrolyte balance in the body.
Conclusion
Summer mushrooms are versatile mushrooms that are a pleasure to collect. They are easy to find in our area, and the basket fills up quickly, as they are easy to find. they never grow alone. Summer mushrooms are low in calories, have a lot of useful properties and have a pleasant taste, which is also important. When you add them to your diet, you can soon feel much better and fresher.
