Fungi Foray - St Austell 2021 - Cornish Wild Food

Fungi Foray - St Austell 2021

3/10/2021

Cornish Wild Food Fungi Foray Mushroom Walk Cornwall

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!

FUNGI MUSHROOMS in Cornwall Bodmin St Austell

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.

Mushroom foraging Cornwall Cep Porcini Chanterelles

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

Agaricus xanthodermus / Yellow Stainer
Agaricus (too old to ID accurately)
Amanita citrina var alba / White False Death Cap
Amanita muscaria / Fly Agaric
Auricularia auricula-judae / Jelly Ear
Boletus edulis / Cep (Porcini)
Boletus subtomentosus / Suede Bolete
Cantharellus cibarius / Chanterelle
Clavulinopsis Helvola / Yellow Club Fungus
Coprinellus micaceus / Glistening Inkcap
Coprinopsis atramentaria / Common Inkcap
Crepidotus / Oysterling
Daldinia concentrica / King Alfred’s Cake
Favolaschia calocera / Orange Pore Fungus
Fistulina hepatica / Beefsteak
Ganoderma applanatum / Artist’s Conk
Gymnopus fusipes / Spindleshank
Hydnum rufescens / Terracotta Hedgehog
Hygrocybe ceracea / Butter Wax Cap
Hypholoma fasciculare / Sulphur Tuft
Laccaria amethystina / Amethyst Deceiver
Laccaria laccata / The Deceiver
Lactarius / Milkcap (colours too washed out to ID)
Lactarius quietus / Oakbug Milkcap
Lepiota Cristata / Stinking Dapperling
Mycena
Oudemansiella mucida / Porcelain Fungus
Paxillus involutus / Brown Rollrim
Russula / Brittlegill (colours too washed out to ID)
Scleroderma citrinum / Common Earthball
Scleroderma verrucosum / Scaley 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

*excluding any LBJs (Little Brown Jobs)