Magnificent Mushrooms! #1

Hi everyone and welcome to our new series which I hope you will enjoy! I will try to publish these posts every week, and on the same day so you will know when to expect them. This will not be a definitive post on identifying or learning about mushrooms. Rather it will be more some interesting facts about mushrooms of many different kinds that are found in our area.

However, most of these mushrooms can be found across eastern Canada and the northeastern United States. So, if you enjoy mushrooms, or even if you do not, come and join me on this little tour of a fascinating fungus. This first mushroom is called Orange-Yellow Fly Agaric. Kind of an odd name for a mushroom, but there it is.

Orange-Yellow Fly Agaric.

This is just one of a large group of mushrooms called Amanita (there are hundreds of varieties around the world). The Amanita group is also very poisonous. This one is generally quite orange in our area (though it can also be white) and is found near deciduous and coniferous trees. It is one of the most beautiful of the Amanita group.

The cap can be up to 10 inches (25cm) wide and covered with buff colored patches (often called warts). This mushroom is poisonous to people and pets. Among other things it can cause delirium and a coma-like condition that can last many hours. Amanitas are poisonous mushrooms and can cause death.

This mushroom can be found out west too and in Europe, but it is bright red in those areas. My picture is a young mushroom, the cap flattens out and spreads as it ages. I was unable to go back to get another picture of it. This mushroom can be found in later summer and fall, especially in a wet year.

If you want to pick wild mushrooms for eating, go with an experienced mushroom hunter at first until you get to recognize what is good and what is not. It will save you a lot of problems, perhaps some very serious problems. Well, I hope you all have a great day and God bless!

Steve and Muffin.

©2024 Steve McLeod.