Mushrooms: Edible Vs. Poisonous
If you buy edible wild mushrooms at the market, many cost over $30 a pound. Yet, these same mushrooms grow wild and are often free. Most people prefer to purchase the mushrooms because they lack the ability to tell poisonous from edible mushrooms. Does this Spark an idea?
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Types
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Know the most toxic mushrooms and avoid them. According to the Missouri Department of Conservation, every mushroom hunter should be able to recognize the three most dangerous mushrooms: the false morel group, the amanitas fungi and a varied group known as little brown mushrooms.
Identification
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Make sure you have a puffball and not an amanitas in its early form. Cut open the mushroom. If it has white flesh and no little mushroom inside, it's a puffball.
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Know It
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If you aren't sure whether a mushroom is edible, pitch it; when in doubt, throw it out.
Features
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Look at all the features of the mushroom: the gills, the cap and the core of the stem. False morels have a spongy substance in the stem, while edible morels are hollow.
Geography
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Observe the location where you found the mushroom. Some edible mushrooms grow in the ground, others attach to rotting trees. Location helps identify the mushroom.
Spores and Scent
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Field guides give information such as how the mushroom smells and what color the spores are. Do a spore test and sniff test to help identify edible mushrooms.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of Vik Nanda
