Along with summer, there are many autumn types of rows: according to fans of “mushroom hunting”, these mushrooms have a richer taste. Moreover, in the fall you can find only two varieties of inedible rows, and these mushrooms are easy to distinguish from edible ones by their characteristic unpleasant odor. Despite the fact that these fruit cases are ranked only in the 4th category, mushroom pickers collect them with pleasure.
September rows are usually located among mixed forests with a predominance of spruce. Outwardly, they are pleasing to the eye, dense, stately, with a good shape. There are many lovers of these spicy mushrooms with a peculiar specific aroma.
In October, smelly rows are often found. They grow very widely near paths and in forest clearings. In October, you must definitely smell all the mushrooms. As a result, you will quickly identify these chemical-smelling mushrooms that are dangerous to eat. Then you will distinguish them from similar edible pigeon rows that do not smell of anything.
In October, you can still find beautiful edible red-yellow rows. If the frosts have not passed, then they are bright and attractive. After frost, the color of the cap fades.
Before heading into the forest, find out what row mushrooms look like and where they grow.
Edible varieties of rows
Row gray (Tricholoma portentosum).
Habitats of this variety of autumn mushrooms: mixed and coniferous forests, growing in groups.
Season: September – November.
Hat 5-12 cm in diameter, sometimes up to 16 cm, at first convex-bell-shaped, later convex prostrate. A distinctive feature of the species is a light gray or light cream surface with a darker greyish-brown center, sometimes with a violet or olive tint; the surface is radially fibrous with darker radial fibers in the middle. In the center of the cap of the mushroom, the gray row often has a flat tubercle. In young specimens, the surface is smooth and sticky.
Leg 5-12 cm tall, 1-2,5 cm thick, grayish-yellowish, covered with powdery coating in the upper part. The stem is short, thickened at the base.
The flesh is whitish and dense with a powdery taste and smell, at first solid, later grooved. Under the skin of the cap, the flesh is gray. In older mushrooms, the smell can be pungent.
The plates are whitish, cream or grayish-yellow, straight and attached with a tooth to the stem or free. The edge of the cap and plate, as they age, may become covered with yellowish spots.
Variability: the fungus is highly variable in color depending on the stage of development, time and humidity of the season.
Similar types: according to the description, the gray row mushroom can be confused with the soap row (Tricholoma saponaceum), which is similar in shape and color at a young age, but differs in the presence of a strong soapy smell in the pulp.
Habitats: mixed and coniferous forests, growing in groups.
Edible, 4th category.
Cooking methods: frying, boiling, salting. Given the pungent odor, it is not recommended to pick the most mature mushrooms, in addition, to mitigate the pungent odor, it is recommended to boil in 2 waters.
These photos clearly illustrate the description of the gray row:
Crowded Row (Lyophyllum decastes).
Habitats: forests, parks and gardens, lawns, near stumps and on humus-rich soil, grow in large groups.
Edible mushroom picking season twisted row: July – October.
Hat 4-10 cm in diameter, sometimes up to 14 cm, at first hemispherical, later convex. The first distinctive feature of the species is the fact that the mushrooms grow in a dense group with fused bases in such a way that it is difficult to separate them. The second distinctive feature of the species is the bumpy, uneven surface of the cap of brownish or gray-brown color with lowered wavy edges.
As you can see in the photo, in this row in the center, the color of the cap is more saturated or dark than on the periphery:
There is often a small, wide tubercle in the center.
Leg 4-10 cm tall, 6-20 mm thick, dense, completely white above, gray-white or grayish-brown below, sometimes flattened and curved.
The pulp is white, thickened in the center of the cap, the taste and smell are pleasant.
The plates are adherent, frequent, white or off-white, narrow.
Variability: the fungus is highly variable in color depending on the stage of development, time and humidity of the season.
Poisonous similar species. The crowded row looks almost like poisonous yellowish gray entoloma (Entoloma lividum), which also has wavy edges and a similar grey-brown cap color. The main difference is the smell of flour in the pulp of entoloma and a separate, rather than crowded growth.
Edible, 4th category.
Cooking methods: salting, frying and marinating.
Look at the photos that illustrate the description of edible rows:
Pigeon row (Tricholoma columbetta).
Habitats: deciduous and mixed forests, in humid zones, grow in groups or singly.
Season: July – October.
Cap 3-10 cm in diameter, sometimes up to 15 cm, dry, smooth, at first hemispherical, later convex-prostrate. A distinctive feature of the species is the bumpy and strongly wavy surface of the cap, ivory or white-cream. There are yellowish spots on the central part.
Look at the photo – in the mushroom rowing, the surface of the pigeon cap is radially fibrous:
Leg 5-12 cm high, 8-25 mm thick, cylindrical, dense, elastic, at the base has a slight narrowing. The pulp is white, dense, fleshy, later pinkish with a mealy smell and a pleasant mushroom taste, turning pink at the break.
The plates are frequent, first attached to the stem, later free.
similarity to other species. According to the description, the edible pigeon row at an early stage of growth is similar to the gray row (Tricholoma portentosum), which is edible and has a different pleasant smell. As they grow, the difference increases due to the grayish color of the hat of the gray row.
Edible, category 4, they can be fried and boiled.
Yellow-red rowing (Tricholomopsis rutilans).
Habitats: mixed and coniferous forests, often on pine and rotten spruce stumps or fallen trees, usually grow in large groups.
Season: July – September.
The cap has a diameter of 5 to 12 cm, sometimes up to 15 cm, in the youngest specimens it looks like a sharp cap, has a bell-shaped shape, then it becomes convex with edges bent down and a small blunt tubercle in the center, and in mature specimens it is prostrate, with a slightly depressed middle. A distinctive feature of the species is the red-cherry uniform color of the cap in the youngest specimens, then it becomes yellow-red with a darker shade at the blunt tubercle, and in maturity with a slightly depressed middle.
Look at the photo – this edible row has a dry, yellow-orange skin with small fibrous reddish scales:
Leg 4-10 cm high and 0,7-2 cm thick, cylindrical, may be slightly thickened at the base, yellowish, with reddish flaky scales, often hollow. The coloration is the same color with the cap or slightly lighter, in the middle part of the stem the coloration is more intense.
The pulp is yellow, thick, fibrous, dense with a sweetish taste and a sour smell. Spores are light cream.
The plates are golden yellow, egg yellow, sinuous, adherent, thin.
similarity to other species. The yellow-red row is easily recognized due to its elegant coloring and beautiful appearance. The species is rare and in some areas is listed in the Red Book, the status is 3R.
Cooking methods: salting, marinating.
Edible, 4th category.
These photos show rowing mushrooms, which are described above:
The following are photos and descriptions of inedible varieties of rows.
Inedible varieties of rows
Pseudo-white rowing (Tricholoma pseudoalbum)
Habitats: deciduous and mixed forests, found in small groups and singly.
Season: August – October.
The cap has a diameter of 3 to 8 cm, at first hemispherical, later convex. A distinctive feature of the species is a white, white-cream, white-pink hat.
As shown in the photo, this inedible row has a stem 3-9 cm tall, 7-15 mm thick, first white, later white-cream or white-pink:
The flesh is whitish, later slightly yellowish with a powdery odor.
The plates are first adherent, later almost free, cream-colored.
Variability: the color of the cap varies from white to white-cream, white-pink and ivory.
similarity to other species. The pseudo-white rowing is similar in shape and size to May row (Tricholoma gambosa), which is distinguished by the presence of delicate pinkish and greenish zones on the hat.
Inedible due to unpleasant taste.
Stinky rowweed (Tricholoma inamoenum).
Where the smelly row grows: deciduous and mixed forests, in humid zones, grow in groups or singly.
Season: June – October.
The cap is 3-8 cm in diameter, sometimes up to 15 cm, dry, smooth, at first hemispherical, later convex prostrate. Edges become slightly wavy with age. The color of the cap is whitish or ivory at first, and with age with brownish or yellowish spots. The surface of the cap is often bumpy. The edge of the cap is bent down.
The leg is long, 5-15 cm high, 8-20 mm thick, cylindrical, dense, elastic, has the same color as the cap.
The pulp is white, dense, fleshy. A distinctive feature of the species is the smelly, strong smell of both young mushrooms and old ones. This smell is the same as that of DDT or lighting gas.
Records of medium frequency, adherent, whitish or cream color.
similarity to other species. The smelly row at an early stage of growth is similar to gray row (Tricholoma portentosum), which is edible and has a different smell, not caustic, but pleasant. As they grow, the difference increases due to the grayish color of the hat of the gray row.
They are inedible due to a strong unpleasant smell, which is not eliminated even with a long boil.
In this collection you can see photos of edible and inedible rows:
