Some forest mushrooms grow on stalks so thin that they can be damaged by the slightest touch. Such fragile fruiting bodies must be collected very carefully, trying not to break off the hat. Among the edible mushrooms on thin legs, various types of russula can be distinguished, and there are also fruit bodies with similar features among the loads.
Russula on thin legs
Russula green (Russula aeruginea).
Family: Russula (Russulaceae)
Season: beginning of July – end of September
Growth: alone and in groups
Description:
The stem is cylindrical, white, with rusty-brown speckles. The peel is easily removed by 2/3 of the radius of the cap.
The hat is green, convex or depressed, sticky.
The pulp is brittle, white, with a bitter taste. The edge of the cap is furrowed. The plates are frequent, adherent, white, then creamy yellowish, sometimes with rusty spots.
A good edible mushroom, used fresh (recommended boiled to remove bitterness) and salted. It is better to collect young mushrooms with a lowered edge.
Ecology and distribution:
It grows in deciduous, mixed (with birch), sometimes in coniferous forests, in young pine-birch, on sandy soils, in grass, in moss, on the edges, near paths.
Russula yellow (Russula claroflava).
Family: Russula (Russulaceae)
Season: mid July – end of September
Growth: alone and in small groups
Description:
The plates are adherent, frequent, yellow.
The hat is bright yellow, dry, convex or flat.
The leg is white, smooth, graying with age. The skin is well removed only along the edge of the cap. The pulp is cotton-like, white, orange-yellow under the skin, darkens on the cut.
This edible mushroom on a thin white stem is used fresh (after boiling) and salted. When boiled, the flesh darkens. It is better to collect young mushrooms with a lowered edge.
Ecology and distribution:
It grows in damp deciduous (with birch) and pine-birch forests, along the outskirts of marshes, in moss and blueberries. Forms mycorrhiza with birch.
Russula blue-yellow (Russula cyanoxantha).
Family: Russula (Russulaceae)
Season: mid June – end of September
Growth: alone and in groups
Description:
The cap is dry or sticky, greenish or brownish in the center, violet-gray, violet-purple or grayish-green along the edge. The skin is removed by 2/3 of the radius of the cap.
The leg is first dense, then hollow, white.
The flesh is white, sometimes with a purple tint, strong, not caustic. The plates are frequent, wide, sometimes branched, silky, white. The pulp in the leg is cotton-like.
The best of cheesecakes. It is used fresh (after boiling), salted and pickled.
Ecology and distribution:
Grows in deciduous and mixed forests (with birch, oak, aspen).
Russula is burning-caustic (Russula emetica).
Family: Russula (Russulaceae)
Season: mid July – October
Growth: alone and in small groups
Description:
The hat is convex, prostrate, slightly depressed, sticky, shiny, red tones. The hat of young mushrooms is spherical.
The flesh is brittle, white, reddish under the skin, with a burning taste. The skin is easily removed.
Records of medium frequency, wide, adherent or almost free. The leg is cylindrical, brittle, white.
This small stalked mushroom is inedible due to its bitter taste. According to some reports, it can cause gastrointestinal upset.
Ecology and distribution:
It grows in deciduous and coniferous forests, in damp places, near swamps.
Russula bile (Russula fellea).
Family: Russula (Russulaceae)
Season: June – September
Growth: alone and in small groups
Description:
The cap is convex at first, then semi-open, depressed in the center, straw-yellow. The edge of the cap is first smooth, then striped.
The flesh is yellowish-white, pale yellow, pungent, bitter. The plates adhering to the stem are frequent, thin, first whitish, then light yellow.
The leg is even, loose, with a hollow in old age, whitish, straw-yellow below. The peel is easily removed only at the edges.
Information about edibility is contradictory. According to some reports, it can be used salty after a long soak.
Ecology and distribution:
Forms mycorrhiza with beech, less often with oak, spruce and other tree species. It grows in various types of forests on drained acidic soils, often in hilly and mountainous areas.
Brittle russula (Russula fragilis).
Family: Russula (Russulaceae)
Season: mid August – October
Growth: alone and in small groups
Description:
The plates are narrowly adherent, relatively rare. The pulp is white, very brittle, with a pungent taste.
The cap is purple or purple-red, sometimes olive green or even light yellow, convex or depressed.
The leg is white, brittle, slightly club-shaped.
Information about edibility is contradictory. According to domestic data, it can be used salty after boiling with draining the broth. Considered inedible in Western sources.
Ecology and distribution:
It grows in coniferous and deciduous (with birch) forests, in damp places, on the edges, in bushes.
Maire’s russula (Russula mairei), poisonous.
Family: Russula (Russulaceae).
Season: summer autumn
Growth: groups and alone
Description:
The pulp is dense, brittle, white in color, with the smell of honey or coconuts.
The hat is bright scarlet, convex or flat, sticky in wet weather.
The leg is smooth, whitish, slightly club-shaped. The plates are relatively rare, fragile, narrowly adherent, white with bluish.
The most poisonous of russula; causes gastrointestinal disturbances.
Ecology and distribution:
It grows in deciduous and mixed forests on fallen leaves and even rotten trunks, on drained soil. Widely distributed in the beech forests of Europe and adjacent regions of Asia.
Russula pale buffy (Russula ochroleuca).
Family: Russula (Russulaceae)
Season: end of August – October
Growth: alone and in groups
Description:
The cap is smooth, ocher-yellow, convex, then prostrate.
The pulp is dense, brittle, white, slightly darkens on the cut, with a pungent taste.
The stem is barrel-shaped, strong, whitish, with a brown tint. The base of the stem turns gray with age. The plates are adherent, relatively frequent, white.
Conditionally edible mushroom. Used fresh (after boiling) and salted.
Ecology and distribution:
This mushroom on a thin stem with a brown tint grows in coniferous (spruce) and damp broad-leaved (with birch, oak) forests, in moss and on litter. It is more common in the southern regions of the forest zone.
Russula marsh (Russula paludosa).
Family: Russula (Russulaceae)
Season: mid July – October
Growth: alone and in groups
Description:
The cap is fleshy, convex, slightly depressed in the center, with a blunt edge. The plates are weakly adherent, frequent, sometimes branched, white or buffy.
The skin of the cap is dry, dark red in the center, bright pink along the edge. The pulp is white, dense in young mushrooms, then loose, with a fruity smell.
The leg is club-shaped or fusiform, hard, sometimes hollow, felt, pink or white.
Edible mushroom. Used fresh (after boiling) and salted.
Ecology and distribution:
It grows in coniferous (with pine) and mixed (pine-birch) forests, in damp places, on the outskirts of swamps, on sandy-peat soils, in moss, in blueberries.
Russula maiden (Russula puellaris).
Family: Russula (Russulaceae)
Season: mid August – October
Growth: groups and alone
Description:
The flesh is brittle, whitish or yellowish. The cap is first convex, then prostrate, sometimes slightly depressed, yellowish or brownish-gray. The edge of the cap is thin, ribbed.
The stalk is slightly expanded towards the base, solid, then hollow, brittle, whitish or yellowish.
The plates are frequent, thin, adherent, white, then yellow.
Edible mushroom. Used fresh (after boiling).
Ecology and distribution:
Grows in coniferous and rarely in deciduous forests.
Russula Turkish (Russula turci).
Family: Russula (Russulaceae)
Season: July-October
Growth: alone and in groups
Description:
The cap is wine-red, black or orange, shiny. The shape of the cap is first hemispherical, then depressed. The plates are adherent, sparse, white or yellowish.
The leg is club-shaped, white.
The pulp is brittle, white with a fruity smell.
Edible mushroom.
Ecology and distribution:
It is found in the mountain coniferous forests of Europe and North America. Forms mycorrhiza with pine and fir.
Russula food (Russula vesca).
Family: Russula (Russulaceae)
Season: mid July – end of September
Growth: alone and in small groups
Description:
The hat is flat-convex, pink, reddish, brownish, unevenly colored. The plates are frequent, of the same length, white or yellowish.
Stem, dense, narrowed towards the base, white. The skin does not reach 1-2 mm to the edge of the cap, it is removed to half.
The pulp is whitish, dense, non-caustic or somewhat pungent in taste. The plates are frequent, narrowly adherent, creamy white, sometimes forked-branched.
One of the most delicious curds. It is used fresh (after boiling) in second courses, salted, pickled, dried.
Ecology and distribution:
It grows in deciduous and broad-leaved (with birch, oak) forests, less often in coniferous, in bright places, in grass.
Russula virescens (Russula virescens).
Family: Russula (Russulaceae)
Season: mid July – mid October
Growth: alone and in groups
Description:
The stem is white, with brownish scales at the base.
The hat is fleshy, matte, yellow or blue-green, in young mushrooms hemispherical. The hat of mature mushrooms is prostrate. The skin is not removed, often cracks.
The pulp is whitish, dense, non-caustic or somewhat pungent in taste. The plates are frequent, narrowly adherent, creamy white, sometimes forked.
One of the most delicious curds. Used fresh (after boiling), salted, pickled, dried.
Ecology and distribution:
Grows in deciduous, mixed (with birch, oak) forests, in bright places. Distributed in the southern regions of the forest zone.
Brown Russula (Russula xerampelina).
Family: Russula (Russulaceae)
Season: mid July – October
Growth: alone and in small groups
Description:
The hat is wide, burgundy, brown or olive in color, darker in the center.
The flesh is white, turning brown on the cut, with a shrimp or herring smell. The plates are adherent, white, turning brown with age.
The stem is white, sometimes with a reddish tint, becoming ocher or brownish with age. The caps of young mushrooms are hemispherical.
It is used salted, pickled, sometimes fresh (after boiling to remove an unpleasant odor).
Ecology and distribution:
It grows in coniferous (pine and spruce), deciduous (birch and oak) forests.
Other slender-stalked mushrooms
White podgruzdok (Russula delica).
Family: Russula (Russulaceae)
Season: mid July – October
Growth: in groups
Description:
The cap is convex at first, white, becomes funnel-shaped with age, sometimes cracking. The plates are decurrent, narrow, white with a bluish-greenish tint.
The leg is dense, white, slightly narrowed below and slightly brownish.
The pulp is white, dense, inedible.
A good edible mushroom, used salted (after boiling).
Ecology and distribution:
This mushroom with a thin long stem grows in deciduous and mixed (with birch, aspen, oak) forests, less often in coniferous (with spruce). A significant part of the life cycle of the fruiting body takes place underground; only bumps are visible on the surface.
Blackening podgrudok (Russula nigricans).
Family: Russula (Russulaceae)
Season: mid July – October
Growth: in groups
Description:
The cap is compressed in the center, grayish in youth, then brownish. The plates are sparse, thick, adherent, yellowish, then brownish, later almost black.
The flesh on the cut first turns red, then blackens, the smell is fruity, the taste is sharp.
The leg is firm, at first light, then turning brown and blackening.
Conditionally edible mushroom. Used salted after boiling for 20 minutes. Blackens in salt.
Ecology and distribution:
Grows in coniferous (with spruce), mixed, deciduous and broad-leaved (with birch, oak) forests
Valui (Russula foetens).
Family: Russula (Russulaceae)
Season: beginning of July – October
Growth: alone and in small groups
Description:
The cap of young mushrooms is almost spherical, with an edge pressed to the stem, mucous. The cap is convex, sometimes prostrate and depressed in the middle, tuberculate, with an edge, dry or slightly sticky, brown. The cap is often eaten away by insects and slugs. The edge of the cap is strongly ribbed, furrowed sometimes cracked.
The leg is swollen or cylindrical, often narrowed to the base, whitish, yellowish, brownish at the base. Drops of a transparent liquid and brown spots are often visible on the plates after they dry. The plates are rare, narrow, often forked, adherent, yellowish. acquires a cellular structure.
The pulp is dense, hard, white, then yellowish, in mature mushrooms it is brittle, with a herring smell and a bitter taste. In mature mushrooms, a rusty inner cavity forms in the leg.
Conditionally edible mushroom; considered inedible in the West. Usually, young mushrooms are harvested with an unopened cap with a diameter of not more than 6 cm. The skin is removed from the valui and after soaking for 2-3 days and boiling for 20-25 minutes. salted, rarely marinated.
Ecology and distribution:
This brown-capped slender-stemmed mushroom forms mycorrhiza with both coniferous and deciduous trees. It grows in deciduous, mixed (with birch) forests, less often in coniferous, on the edge of the forest, on the edges, in the grass and on the litter. Prefers shady, damp places. It is common in forests in Eurasia and North America, in Our Country it is most common in the European part, the Caucasus, Western Siberia and the Far East.