Wild mushrooms have always been fascinating. They are somewhat whimsical and conjure up a whirlwind of thoughts and nostalgic memories when I come across any. From Alice and Wonderland, fairy houses and my mother telling us not to touch the wild mushrooms because they could be poisonous and deadly.
The past few years I’ve always wanted to go on a true mushroom forage but have never had the opportunity to go with an actual mushroom forager- going to pick mushrooms alone and do a tasting session without properly identifying the ‘shrooms doesn’t seem like such a good idea…
BUT, this year, I thought I’d take myself on a journey through ‘magical mushroom terrain’ just to see what I could find in the woodlands near to where I live. I promised myself I wouldn’t eat anything, but did want to try and identify as much as I could and really start to get an understanding of what mushrooms are growing nearby / whether I could possibly eat any of them in the coming years…
The end of October is a great time for mushrooms here in the U.K..
One beautiful morning, late October I took myself out into the woodlands and began my search. I wanted to share the findings with you- who doesn’t like a bit of mushroom photography?! I want to encourage you to also do the same- explore, feel and smell. It’s one of the richest things for our bodies and minds to get out into nature, discover new things, feel the earth, connect with the trees and breathe that fresh oxygen into our lungs.
If anyone knows of a mushroom forager in London or Kent, I’d love a recommendation. Otherwise – please enjoy the photos. I’ve decided not to name any of the images (in case I get the identification wrong) but as an overview- I came across some fly agaric, butter bolete, amethyst deceiver and birch polypore.
ENJOY!
D.O.A.N.G
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Nice exploration. You found a lot. Here, mushroom time is spring. My dad used to bring home a bag of morels every year. My mother would fry them in butter. Yum!
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Oh how wonderful! It would be amazing to find morels (one of my favourites). Do you continue to forage for mushrooms in the same spot your dad used to search?
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No, I don’t live in the same place. There is a mushroom walk in a park nearby in the spring, though, and I did ask someone in the neighborhood once if I could take the puffball from their yard if they weren’t planning on eating it…Excellent fried in butter (or olive oil). Mostly I don’t see anything edible, but I know they’re out there!
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