link to Home Page

icon Distinguished


The best edible mushrooms are 72% water, although they can be up to 80-92% water. High humidity requirements necessitate the proximity of water. Do not expect to find mushrooms following 48 hours of high wind. Saline soils are definitely hostile to mushroom growth. Once picked, mushrooms should be cut length wise to make sure they don't contain insect larvae. Mushrooms should be eaten quickly and should not be kept for more than 24 hours in warm weather, they are very nitrogenous and can become dangerous when spoiled. If they can not be eaten then they should either be sundried or string them up to be wind dried. Basic guidelines for the inexperienced are:

Stem: with ring                               			to be rejected
          with covered cup at the base       			 "
          with ring and cup                 			  "

Cap:  with gills                              			reject
          with pores
                - meat turns blue when cut (meat      		reject
                  is not edible if color changes)
          with pinprick-like pores            			edible
          with folds                          			edible
          with alveoli (sponge appearance)    			edible 

Even though some edible mushrooms will be discarded, you will atleast be certain to discard all poisonous ones.

Source Book: Survival; How to Prevail in Hostile Environments by Xavier Maniguet, pages 358-360

Offered by Steve.

To see if a mushroom is poisonous, boil it and throw a coin in the water. If the coin tarnishes, then the mushroom is poisonous.
Mike

I’ve been reading some survival books, and they say, you can eat pretty much any mushroom that does not have a white milky sap though don’t take my word for it please! Some books say to stay away from all mushrooms as they don’t hold much food value and aren’t worth the risk. The coin test looks like it’s for alkaloids, I assume, which are certainly poisonous, and I’m assuming the coin is a penny as copper is an easy tarnish. I would say, buy some shrooms from the grocery store and test the theory, see if the coin does or doesn’t tarnish.

Offered by Aron.

The rule I abide with is that all mushrooms with white gills are poisonous. (I know this is not so, only most of them are poisonous, but because of my lack of specific expertise I avoid them all). I have a go at most mushrooms with dark gills. I know I can eat all 'sponge' mushrooms. Those with a sponge appearance rather than gills on the underside. Some of them may be bitter (nutty) , but they are all healthy.

Offered by Stephen.

icon