Contents
Morgan’s umbrella is a mushroom representative of the Champignon family, the genus Macrolepiota. Belongs to the group of lamellar, has other names: Lepiota or Chlorophyllum Morgana.
The mushroom is poisonous, but due to its similarity with other specimens, lovers of quiet hunting often confuse it with edible groups.
The use of this species poses a serious danger to the human body. Therefore, it is important to be able to distinguish these mushrooms before going into the forest.
Where does Morgan’s parasol mushroom grow?
The habitat of the species is open areas, meadows, lawns, as well as golf courses. Less often, representatives of this species can be found in the forest. They grow both singly and in groups. The fruiting period begins in June and continues until October. Lepiota Morgana is common in tropical regions of Central and South America, Asia and Oceania. The species can often be found in North America, in particular, in the north and southwest of the United States (including in such megacities as New York, Michigan), less often in Turkey and Israel. The distribution area in Our Country has not been studied.
What does Lepiota Morgana look like?
The mushroom has a brittle, fleshy spherical cap, the diameter of which is 8-25 cm. As it grows, it becomes prostrate and depressed in the center.
The color of the cap can be white or light brown, with dark scales in the center.
When pressed, the shade changes to red-brown. Morgan’s umbrella is distinguished by loose, wide plates, which change color from white to olive green as they mature.
The light leg expands towards the base, has fibrous brownish scales.
The fungus is characterized by a mobile, sometimes falling off double ring 12 to 16 cm long. Initially white flesh becomes red with age, with a yellow tint at the break.
Is it possible to eat Morgan’s chlorophyllum
This mushroom is classified as highly poisonous due to the high content of toxic protein in the composition. The use of fruiting bodies can cause diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and lead to poisoning, in the worst case, to death.
False doubles
One of the false twins of Morgan’s umbrella is the poisonous Lepiota inflated. This is a mushroom with a small hat 5-6 cm in diameter, as it grows, it changes shape from a convex-campanulate to an open one.
The surface of the fungus can be beige, white-yellow or reddish. Scales are densely located on it, especially along the edges of the cap.
The hollow, fibrous leg reaches up to 8 cm in height. On its surface is an almost imperceptible ring.
You can meet the species quite rarely. The fruiting period lasts from August to September. Places of growth of Lepiota vzdutosporovaya – forests of various types. This fungus spreads in small groups.
Morgan’s umbrella is also often confused with the edible parasol. The double has a large hat up to 30-40 cm in diameter. It is distinguished by an ovoid shape, as it grows, turning into an outstretched umbrella-shaped.
The surface of the fungus can be white-gray, whitish or brown. It has large lagging scales.
Cylindrical brown leg up to 30 cm high has a white ring.
The mushroom grows in forests and gardens. Its fruiting period lasts from July to October.
Rules for collection and use
When harvesting, mushroom pickers bypass Morgan’s umbrella: due to its high toxicity, the species is strictly forbidden to be used for culinary purposes. In the composition of the fruiting bodies there are no substances useful for the human body, so chlorophyllum is of no value even as an external remedy. To recognize a poisonous mushroom, you can change color by its features: due to the high content of poisonous protein compounds, the flesh of Morgan’s umbrella becomes brown when it comes into contact with oxygen.
Conclusion
Morgan’s umbrella is a poisonous fungus that grows in open areas singly or in groups. The species has several false twins, which is important for lovers of quiet hunting. Representatives of this variety can be distinguished by the ability of the pulp to change color when the fruit body is broken.
