Once again we were fortunate and it was a beautiful day with the sun shining on us whilst we explored the woods. Although we had been praying for rain to give the mycelium a helping hand and produce fruiting bodies, the dry weather allowed us to use our 'precious' mushroom books. Comprehensive fungi books are quite an investment, pricey but worth the cost!

​On the Monday of this week we had a full months worth of rain fall over the course of one day, so the ground had a thorough soaking. After an unusually warm and dry start to autumn us foragers were anxiously waiting for the (delayed) appearance of our favourite edible mushrooms.

Thanks to a couple of generous friends we had a proper mushroom feast. Lisa kindly shared her hoard of her absolute favourite 'shroom with us - parasol mushrooms. Last time we added them to the soup but this time we wanted to showcase their creamy flavour so they were simply cooked in garlic oil and served on crostini.

Between last weeks foray and this weeks we managed to escape to Devon for a few days holiday. We were hopeful that the woods we were staying near would be mushroom heaven but unfortunately it was the wrong type of habitat with mostly sycamore trees. We found several breathtaking fairy rings, with hundreds of young field mushrooms peeping out of the grass, so we decided to let them grow then grab them on our way home to Cornwall. Sadly when we went to pick them they had been mowed down! Fortunately our friend Tom came to the rescue with his bumper haul of hedgehog mushrooms which made the soup truly delicious.

​We were joined by photographer Graeme Willetts and he has kindly provided us with lots of beautiful images of our discoveries.

This is the 35* different species we found on the day:
(in alphabetic order according to the scientific names)

Amanita muscaria / Fly Agaric
Amanita rubescens / The Blusher
Apioperdon pyriforme / Stump Puffball
Auricularia auricula-judae / Jelly Ear (tiny baby one)
Boletus edulis / Cep (Porcini) (very small)
Cantharellus cibarius / Chanterelle (pinning)
Clavulina coralloides / Crested Coral Fungus
Clavulinopsis Helvola / Yellow Club Fungus
Coprinellus micaceus / Glistening Inkcap
Coprinopsis atramentaria / Common Inkcap
Cortinarius violaceus / Violet Webcap
Daldinia concentrica / King Alfred’s Cake
Favolaschia calocera / Orange Pore Fungus
Fistulina hepatica / Beefsteak
Ganoderma applanatum / Artist’s Conk
Geastrum triplex / Collared Earthstar
Gymnopus fusipes / Spindleshank
Hydnum repandum / Hedgehog 
Hygrocybe ceracea / Butter Wax Cap
Hypholoma fasciculare / Sulphur Tuft
Hypomyces chrysospermus (parasitic ascomycete fungus that grows on bolete mushrooms)
Laccaria amethystine / Amethyst Deceiver
Laccaria laccata / The Deceiver
Lactarius Quietus / Oakbug Milkcap
Oudemansiella mucida / Porcelain Fungus
Paxillus involutus / Brown Rollrim
Piptoporus betulinus / Birch Polypore
Pseudoboletus parasiticus / Parasitic Bolete
Russula cyanoxantha / Charcoal Burner
Scleroderma citrinum / Common Earthball 
Skeletocutis (nivea) / White Crust Fungus, potentially Hazel Bracket
Trametes versicolor / Turkey Tail
Tricholoma ustale / Burnt Knight
Xerocomellus chrysenteron / Red Cracked Bolete
Xylaria polymorpha / Dead Man’s Fingers

​

After having to postpone the scheduled foray the week before we were anxious about this week's walk. We need to find specific varieties of mushrooms for effective teaching; the different subspecies display key features that help with identification skills. I want to provide the best possible experience and with no rain predicted for the week before last I decided I had to postpone the upcoming lesson. Sadly, across the country, other fungi instructors I know have needed to do the same.

Fungi seasons are always fickle and hard to predict and this year has been even trickier than normal. We had an unusually early showing in the summer due to large amounts of rain, but then everything dried up and there was a period where not much happened in the fungi world. The fungi mycelium requires a significant amount of rain over a few days to grow the fruiting body (mushrooms!) in addition to a drop in temperature, which then triggers growth. The last few weeks have been unusually dry and warm, resulting in little mushroom activity. 

Finally the rain came in so we were able to begin our hunt. We reccied these woods three days before today's group walk and the diversity and growth from then to now was amazing. It took us ages to enter the proper woods because we found so much on the path leading in! 

Today finished with a hearty potato, leek, cep, parasol and chanterelle soup topped with a drizzle of cream and sourdough bread to dunk. Thankfully we had a good 'shroom harvest (thanks to our personal parasol and chanterelle spots!) a few days earlier that we shared with our lovely guests. Thanks all for coming and sharing our bounty.

​Here is the 36* different species we found on the day:
(in alphabetic order according to the scientific names)

The rain didn't stop us! We braved the elements and were rewarded with finding a plethora of wild fungi. We probably found nearly a quarter of the varieties in just the first few hundred yards. Everyone was taken a back by how much is right under our nose as we hurriedly walk by. It was a good reminder to slow down and take your time!

We found our first hedgehog mushrooms after a bit of a trek. We had just come through a younger park of the woodland that was lacking in the right tree types and hardly found anything. This made finding them even more exciting. Some of us scrabbled about in the undergrowth on the side of the bank determined to find as many as we could for lunch.

​Here is a complete* list of what we found on our Fungi Foray in the Looe area last week.

Birch polypore / Piptoporus betulinus
Blusher / Amanita rubescens 
Oakbug milkcap / Lactarius quietus
Beech milkcap / Lactarius blennius
​Jellybaby fungus / Leotia lubrica
​Beechwood sickener / Russula nobilis
​Terracotta hedgehog / Hydnum rufescens
Wood hedgehog / Hydnum repandum
Green elfcup / Chlorociboria aeruginascens
Glistening inkcap / Coprinellus micaceus 
Brown rollrim / Paxillus involutus
Wood blewitt / Lepista nuda
Candlesnuff fungus / Xylaria hypoxylon
Common earthball / Scleroderma citrinum
Red cracked bolete / Boletus chrysenteron
False death cap / Amanita citrina
Sulphur tuft / Hypholoma fasciculare
Ringless honey fungus / Armillaria tabescens
Brittlegill / Russula Farinipes
Spindleshank or Toughshank / Gymnopus fusipes
Split gill / Schizophyllum commune
Clouded agaric / Clitocybe nebularis

​*excluding any LBJs (Little Brown Jobs)

My aim on the day was to teach my guests how to safely identify and analyze fungi. I also sort to dispel lots of myths around the edibility of mushrooms. We looked at the features of various different types of fungi to learn how to tell them apart. 

​An area that would normally take 30 minutes to walk took us 3 hours! Everyone had fun scrabbling around, exploring the undergrowth, and appreciating the detail in the various habitats. The moment of delight when we found the first Chanterelle led to a pause when everyone slowed down to hunt for more. 

​Another key moment was finding a Death Cap and False Death Cap in close succession to compare the various important features. Know your enemy!

The walk ended with ID workshop and a cook up. We had Winter Chanterelles fried in butter and thyme on crusty bread, followed by a mushroom soup. The soup was a simple potato and leek soup made only with a stock from dried cep and cauliflower mushroom, to which we added our Chanterelles, Winter Chanterelles and Oyster mushrooms, and finished with fresh thyme.

​Here is a complete* list of what we found this week on our Fungi Foray yesterday in the Bodmin area.

Fly agaric / Amanita muscaria
Common earthball / Scleroderma citrinum
Red cracked bolete / Boletus chrysenteron
Bay bolete / Imleria badia
Death cap / Amanita phalloides
False death cap / Amanita citrina
Stink horn / Phallus impudicus
Winter chanterelle / Cantherellus tubaeformis
Chanterelle / Cantharellus cibarius
Amethyst chanterelle / Cantharellus amethysteus
Sulphur tuft / Hypholoma fasciculare
Turkey tail / Trametes versicolor
The deceiver / Laccaria laccata
Toads ear / Otidea bufonia
Common funnel / Clitocybe gibba
Brittlegill / Russula Farinipes
Zombie fungus / Cordyceps militaris
Webcap / Cortinarius
Spindleshank / Gymnopus fusipes
Candlesnuff fungus / Xylaria hypoxylon
Milkcap / Lactarius omphaliformis
Gymnopus acervatus (Collybia acervata)

*excluding any LBJs (Little Brown Jobs)

We are having a wild feast Sunday 19th November.
It’s to celebrate the first birthday of Woodmans Wild Ales. There will be lots of foraged foods paired with Stuarts amazing wild ales, we also have a tasting expert to talk use through the various unique flavours. Each course comes with a beer included in the price and is a bargain at £35 a ticket.

If this menu tickles your taste buds then please book via Eventbright.
​

The Menu

White Elephant 7.5%
wildcrafted with blackthorn leaves, elderflower, sea arrowgrass and sea purslane
Crostini with three cornered leek and sorrel pesto with white bean and pepper dulse purée    (vegan)
 
 
Kea Porter 5.2%
wildcrafted with kea plums
Helford Blue and nettle curd cheese
Or
Wild herb crusted cheese (vegan)
 
Served with pickled samphire and forager’s chutney
 
 
Growsette 5.1%
wildcrafted with gooseberries
Mussels and samphire in beer
Or
Hedgerow spiced celeriac soup with hazelnut oil (vegan)
 
Served with homemade wild thyme, seaweed and beer bread
 
 
Redruth Red 7%
wildcrafted with bilberries and wild strawberries
Cornish venison and chestnut pie
Or
Wild mushroom and chestnut pie (vegan)
 
Served with seasonal and seashore veg
 
 
Queenie 8.1%
wildcrafted with Cornish apples
Medlar sticky toffee pudding and herb bennet custard
(Vegan option on request)