﻿ What are edible mushrooms, description and types of mushrooms - General information - 2020
General information

Honey agarics - photo and description

Learn this fungus is easy. An open mushroom has a flexible, thin, sometimes quite long stem (can reach 12-15 cm), the color of which varies from light honey to dark brown, depending on the age and place of growth of honey agaric. The leg of many honey agarics (not all) is “dressed up” in a ring-skirt, and its graceful plate-shaped cap, usually rounded from the bottom, crowns it. In a young mushroom, it is hemispherical in shape, covered with small scales, but with its “maturation” it becomes umbrella-shaped and becomes smooth.

The hue of the headstone is different from cream or yellowish to reddish.

Useful properties of experience

Honey mushrooms are one of the most popular mushrooms, which got their name from the place of their growth. Since mushrooms are not grown separately, but live with their entire families, you can easily assemble a whole basket of tasty and healthy mushrooms, which, by the way, are considered a very low-calorie product, around one stump.
Useful substances that are part of the experience:

  • vitamins of group B, C, PP and E,
  • trace elements (phosphorus, potassium, zinc, iron, and so on),
  • cellulose,
  • amino acids
  • squirrels,
  • natural sugars.

What is useful honey mushrooms? Interestingly, in terms of the content of some useful microelements, for example, phosphorus and potassium, which are in their composition, mushrooms can safely compete with river or other types of fish. Therefore, it is advisable to use these mushrooms for vegetarians for the prevention of bone and bone disorders.
Due to the high content of magnesium, iron, zinc and copper mushrooms in mushrooms, they have a positive effect on blood formation processes, therefore they are recommended to be taken for anemia. Only 100 g of these mushrooms is enough, and you can fill the body with the daily rate of trace elements necessary to maintain hemoglobin.
Numerous species of mushrooms vary considerably in their vitamin composition. While some species of these mushrooms are rich in retinol, which is useful for strengthening hair, promotes youthful skin and eye health, others are endowed with large amounts of vitamin E and C, which have a beneficial effect on the immune and hormonal system.
Also, mushrooms are considered natural antiseptics, as they can boast of anti-cancer and antimicrobial properties. By their strength, they can be compared with antibiotics or garlic, so they are useful to take in the presence of E. coli in the body or Staphylococcus aureus.
Regular consumption of honey extracts can prevent the development of cardiovascular diseases. In folk medicine, this fungus is often used to treat pathologies of the liver and thyroid gland.

Cooking honey agaric

With regard to the use of experience in food, you should take into account the fact that the lower part of the leg is stiff, therefore it is welcome to use only the mushroom cap. After collecting the fungus, you must thoroughly wash and remove the garbage. The main cooking methods include mushrooms such as frying, pickling and salting. Mushrooms can be stored frozen.

False mushrooms: description and photos. How to distinguish edible mushrooms from false.

An experienced mushroom picker can easily distinguish between false mushrooms and edible mushrooms, and although certain types of false mushrooms are considered conditionally edible, it’s better not to take risks, but follow the rule: “Not sure - don’t take them”.

What do false mushrooms look like? The color of the hat of real honey agarics has a light beige or brownish color, the caps of inedible honey agarics are painted more brightly and can be rusty brown, brick red or orange.

Especially dangerous are considered false sulfur-yellow mushrooms, having a similar color to these.

Sulfur yellow false mushrooms

False honey agarics of Candol (psatirella Candol) (Latin: Psathyrella candolleana)

Watery fossa (psatirella water-loving) (lat. Psathyrella piluliformis)

To distinguish the mushrooms from the false mushrooms, you also need to know that the surface of the cap of the edible mushrooms is covered with special specks - scales, darker than the cap itself. Falcons have a smooth cap, in most cases wet, and after the rain it becomes adhesive. As the fungus grows, the scales disappear, this must be taken into account by lovers of overgrown mushrooms.

The distinction of false agaries is also in the plates of the fungus. The reverse side of the cap of real edible mushrooms consists of many white, cream or white-yellow plates. Records of poisonous green, bright yellow, or olive-black. False brick-red hair has often a cobweb formation under the head.

Brick Red False Honeystone

Edible mushrooms have a characteristic mushroom flavor, false ones usually give a lot of mold or unpleasant smell of earth, and also have a bitter taste.

In order to protect oneself from agonizing torments and serious poisoning, a novice mushroom picker still needs to focus on the main difference - the presence of a “skirt” under the cap of the present fruit.

Names description and photo

Its name honeydew (translated from the Latin "bracelet") received because of the peculiar form of growth of mushrooms - in the form of a ring.

Most of the experience can be found on the stumps of whole families, in coniferous and deciduous forests. Mushrooms prefer to grow on any rotten wood and rotting stumps.

You can find mushrooms not only under the trees, but also on the meadows, forest edges and under shrubs.

Mushrooms are easy to recognize, they have a long, thin leg up to 12-15 cm long. Color varies from light yellow to dark brown depending on the place of growth and age.

Most experience on the leg is "Skirt". The head of the round shape rounded down, the bottom side with pronounced plates.

The color of the cap varies from light cream to red-brown shades. Hat young honey agarics covered with small scales, with age it becomes smooth.

Each species of mushrooms has its own specific differences, it all depends on the place of growth and age.

Useful properties and harm

Mushrooms useful to eat, are considered low-calorie product. The composition of honey agarics includes not only minerals and vitamins, but thiamine, which is responsible for the nervous system and reproductive function.

Of the useful substances included in the composition of the experiment, you can select such: trace elements (potassium, phosphorus, iron, zinc and others), vitamins Groups B, C, PP and E, amino acids, fiber, proteins.

In folk medicine, mushrooms are known for their antiviral and anti-cancer action on the human body, often used in the treatment of the thyroid gland and liver pathologies. Honey agarics excellent remove toxins from the body, have a positive effect on blood formation.

100 g of honeydew contains the daily rate of trace elements to maintain hemoglobin in normal conditions. Regularly using the mushrooms you prevent development cardiovascular diseases.

Mushrooms will not bring any harm to a person if they have undergone preliminary training before cooking.

Contraindications to use again

Do not forget that mushrooms are hard food to digest, therefore do not eat mushrooms at night. Excessive drinking can cause diarrhea. Do not give mushrooms to children younger 12 years.

From a large number of edible species of honey agaric. can be identified 4 main, most often collected by mushroom pickers.

Edible fungus that grows in large colonies, mainly on rotten and damaged wood in deciduous forests. The cap of this species is brown again, it becomes transparent after the rain.

The opiate has a cap with a diameter of 3-8 mm, the center is lighter than the edges. The shade is up to 9 cm high, the leg is light with a ring, with time only a strip remains from it. Below a ringlet of a leg with scales.

The first mushrooms can be found from June and they bear fruit until the end of August.

These mushrooms on a high stem are up to 10 cm, yellowish in color with white bloom, dense in length, slightly widened downwards. Over time, the foot thickens.

The size of the cap is from 3 to 7 mm in diameter, light yellow in color, becomes yellowish-brown in wet weather. The edges of the cap are lighter than the center. Bottom bright, rare records.

Begin to bear fruit from June to autumn frosts.

You can find mushrooms in the meadows, fields, summer cottages, in ravines and forest edges. Mushrooms grow in arcuate rows.

A popular species of honey agaric, differs in the big sizes. Mushroom on the leg length of 8-10 cm with a slight thickening at the very bottom. Leg thickness up to 2 cm. You can see a pronounced ring under the cap itself.

The caps are large, on average 3-10 cm (it can be up to 15-17 cm). Light yellow plates, rare.

Young mushrooms are covered with scales on the surface. The color of the cap depends on the type of trees on which the mushrooms grow, from light to brown.

Mushrooms start to bear fruit from the end of August and end in October.

Mushrooms can be found on damaged and old deciduous trees, mainly on poplars and willows.

Leg 2–7 cm high, up to 1 cm thick, velvety brown.

On the leg there is no ring under the cap. The cap reaches a diameter of 10 cm, from yellow to brownish-orange color. The plates are white, rare. The flesh is white or yellowish.

Honey agarics can be found in thawed patches and even under snow, from autumn to spring.

False mushrooms - the main differences

If you are an inexperienced mushroom picker, always follow the rule: "Not sure - do not take"it is better not to risk your health and your close people.

The main differences: the caps of inedible mushrooms are colored brighter, they may be brick red, rust brown or orange, while edible ones have a light beige or brownish color.

The most dangerous are false honey fungus with sulfur yellow color.

Also the surface of the cap is edible covered in scales, darker color than the color of the cap.

False mushrooms always have a smooth cap surface, often wet, and after passing the rain the surface becomes adhesive.

Lovers of overgrown mushrooms should take into account the moment that the scales disappear as the mushrooms grow.

Edible mushrooms have always white, cream, pink plates on the underside of the cap, and in the false agonies they darken quickly, have green, olive-black shades.

On the leg of edible mushrooms is Film "skirt" located under the bonnet, the false ones do not have it - the main difference to which one should always be guided.

These mushrooms have mushroom flavor, poisonous mushrooms give mold, ground.

What to cook from honey agaric?

Like most mushrooms, mushrooms after harvesting or buying need to be processed as soon as possible. There are various methods of cooking experience, it all depends on the number of harvested mushrooms.

You can cook soup, fry in a pan with onions, freeze fresh for the winter, marinate in jars.

The fastest method of cooking and processing again - frying. You will have a fragrant and tasty dish, any side dish will suit mushrooms.

Marinating mushrooms for the winter - A tasty snack for the winter, stored for a long time and is perfect for any festive table.

Cooked soup soup will make the dish light and lean, but it will remain very useful and nutritious.

Freezing mushrooms for the winter

The harvested crop can be frozen for the winter fresh or after pre-heat treatment.

Freezing fresh mushrooms will retain the taste and aroma of freshly cut mushrooms, after defrosting they are suitable for preparing various dishes. Before freezing the fungus can not be washed, you must manually remove all plant residues and dirt from the mushrooms.

Also pre-sort the mushrooms by size, discard them with damages and rot. You can freeze in bags with clasps, in plastic containers. Spread the mushrooms in one layer, with large quantities, they just stick together and lose their shape when defrosting. After freezing, they can be stored for 6 months at -18 degrees.

Frozen honey cake with preliminary heat treatment

Mushrooms before freezing prepare one of three methods: blanch, boil or stir fry. After processing the mushrooms stored 3-4 months.

What is the difference between the false yellow sulphureus and edible species?

This type of fruit body is a dangerous “guest” in your basket. If the fungus that you want to put in your basket, even vaguely resembles a sulfur yellow agar, it is better to give it up. Since this mushroom is considered poisonous, it is necessary to know the difference between the false agaric and edible mushrooms.

Latin name:Hypholoma fasciculare.



Hat: with a diameter of 3-7 cm, in the young - bell-shaped. With age it changes and becomes prostrate, acquiring a form resembling an open umbrella. Color corresponds to the name: gray-yellow, yellow-brown. The center of the cap is darker (sometimes reddish brown), the edges are lighter.

Leg: flat, cylindrical, up to 10 cm high and up to 0.5 cm thick. Hollow, fibrous, light yellow color.

Pulp: light yellow or whitish, with a pronounced unpleasant smell and bitter taste.

Records: thin, densely located, often adherent to a leg. At a young age, the plates are sulfur-yellow, then acquire a greenish tint, and at the end become olive-black.

Pay attention to the photo, where you can see how the false sulfur-yellow mushrooms look:

Edibility: poisonous mushroom. When used in food causes poisoning, until fainting.

Spread: almost the entire territory of the Russian Federation, except for permafrost zones. It grows in whole groups from mid-June to early October. Found on decaying deciduous and coniferous trees. Also grows on the stumps and on the soil near the roots of trees.

How does the false brick-red hair look like (with photo)

Another representative of false species of mushrooms, the edibility of which it is impossible to come to a common opinion. In our territory, it is considered poisonous, whereas in Canada, Italy and Germany, brick-red casseroon is freely eaten. His description will help to see the difference between false agarics and edible mushrooms.

Latin name:Hypholoma sublateritium.



Hat: rounded convex, spherical, prostrate with age. From 4 to 8 cm in diameter (sometimes up to 12 cm), thick, fleshy, red-brown, less often yellow-brown. The center of the cap is darker, and at the edges you can often notice white flakes - the remains of a private veil.

Leg: flat, dense and fibrous, as it grows, it becomes hollow and curved. Up to 10 cm in length and 1-1.5 cm in thickness. The upper part is bright yellow, the bottom - red-brown.

Pulp: thick, whitish or dirty yellow, bitter in taste and unpleasant to smell.

This type of fruit body can be clearly seen in the photo showing the false and normal mushrooms of the mushroom:

Records: frequent, narrow-grown, light gray or yellow-gray. With age, the color changes to olive-gray, sometimes with a violet shade.

Edibility: People are considered to be a poisonous fungus, although in most sources, brick-red casseroles are classified as conditionally edible mushrooms.

Spread: Eurasia and North America. It grows on rotting stumps, branches and trunks of deciduous trees.

How to distinguish false mushrooms from normal edible (with photos and video)

First of all, you need to thoroughly prepare yourself to know which mushrooms you have met in the forest - false or not, and how to recognize them among the edible representatives of the fruit bodies? The main trick of all false mushrooms lies in the following: they grow in the same places and in the same seasons as edible ones. Sometimes they even intertwine with each other on the stumps, branches and trunks of fallen trees.


In fact, the poisonous mushroom is not so difficult to distinguish from the present. To do this, you should carefully consider its appearance. As already mentioned, edible mushrooms have a more “modest” color, as opposed to false ones. Often, the latter immediately catch the eye, because their caps are painted in brick-red, honey-brown and orange colors. However, this is not all the signs of false experiences.


The first and most important difference to which it is necessary to pay attention is the presence of a ring-skirt on the stem of the fruiting body. In all types of edible mushrooms such a ring is necessarily present, but false representatives do not have such a characteristic feature. Pay attention to the photo, where you can see how to distinguish the false mushrooms from the real ones by the presence of a skirt ring:

However, it should be noted that adults and overgrown specimens may lose this trait. Therefore, in this case it is worth paying attention to other known differences.


The next important difference between false and edible mushrooms is the smell. Just cut off the mushroom or slightly break the cap: a real garlic has a pleasant aroma, which cannot be said about false views. The latter emit the smell of mold, soil and grass.

We also offer a video about false and edible mushrooms:

How else to recognize false mushrooms or not: distinguishing features


The caps of real honey mushrooms are fully or partially covered with scales, whereas the false mushrooms have completely smooth caps. The exception is the winter garland, but in the season of its fruiting (winter) it is impossible to meet other types of fruit bodies. However, it is also worth remembering that as they mature, such scales disappear from real honey agarics.


Look under the caps collected mushrooms: у съедобных видов пластинки имеют нежный кремовый или бело-жёлтый цвет, в то время как пластинки ложных представителей окрашены в грязно-жёлтый или жёлтый оттенок. With age, the plates of inedible fungi become greenish or dirty-brown.

Look at some more photos of false and edible mushrooms in order to determine how to distinguish them by external signs:


The pulp of false agaries mostly has a bitter taste. However, it is not recommended to try them, much less bite off a piece to determine whether you can take it to your basket! The signs described above should be sufficient to accurately understand how to behave with this or that type of fruit body.

A mushroom picker with experience can immediately determine the edibility of the mushroom, but for beginners, “quiet hunting” fans should apply their knowledge with great care!

Mushrooms false how to distinguish photos

Inedible from edible fungus is easy to distinguish if you look closely and smell well.

  • The false honey agarics no ring with skirt on the cylindrical stem, and colored hatbrightnot pleasing to the eye by color.
  • Matters and color plates. The false honey agarics the plates under the cap are yellow or greenishoccasionally dirty - brown.

By smell honey fungi false how to distinguish will tell mushroom pickers who tried edible mushrooms and remembered their taste.

  • The smell of edibles is pleasant as well false mushrooms smell like grass or earth. They are all kind of push people away and seem to shout "do not touch."

Winter and meadow

During the winter thaw, you can find mushrooms that are under the snow. Most often they sprout on old willows or poplars. They have an average size. The width of the cap can be up to 8 cm. Its color is brownish-brown. If the weather is dry outside, then it is glossy, and in dampness - smooth and slippery. The height of the leg is 6 cm. It is velvety and hollow. The upper part of the leg is light brown in color, and the lower part is maroon or dark brown. As for the pulp, it has a neutral taste, cream color and a delicate mushroom flavor. The plates are winter cream colored.