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Winter tinder fungus or winter polyporus is an annual mushroom. From the name it is clear that it tolerates winter well. It is considered a very expensive mushroom. It occurs quite often in deciduous and mixed forests, both alone and in families.
Under the hat of the tinder fungus, well-defined wide disputes
Description of winter tinder fungus
Polyporus winter refers to the hat-legged representatives. The hat is flat, up to 10 cm in diameter, covered with short hairs. It has a tubular texture of pale cream color. The pores are large and visible to the naked eye. The edges of the cap are usually bent down. In a mature species, a fossa (depression) appears in the center at the top. The color of various shades depending on age: brown-yellow, brown-gray, brown, and sometimes blackish. Spores ripen under the hat, turn white.
The leg of the polyporus is dense to the touch, light brown, on average grows up to 6 cm, sometimes up to 10 cm, diameter up to 1 cm. The trunk has small veins, velvety to the touch, with black spots on the surface.
This species has a white, rather elastic pulp. In the leg it is dense, but elastic in the cap. In a mature representative, the flesh becomes yellowish and hard. The characteristic mushroom taste is absent. There is no smell when dry.
Shades of color of this representative of the fungus may vary depending on the climate and place of its growth.
Where and how to grow
This type of fungus grows in central Our Country and to the Far East.
Most often grows alone, although there are both small and large groups. Winter tinder grows in such places:
- wood of deciduous trees (birch, linden, willow, mountain ash, alder);
- broken branches, weakened trunks;
- rotten wood;
- edge of the road;
- light areas.
Growing on trees, this forest dweller infects them with white corrosive rot. Causes damage to parks and wooden buildings.
Although this representative is called winter, it can also be attributed to the spring-summer representatives of the forest. Winter tinder appears in early May. The second period of appearance is the end of autumn. Active growth occurs in July-October.
Is the mushroom edible or not?
This mushroom representative is considered an inedible specimen. The pulp is firm. It does not have a characteristic mushroom smell. There are no taste qualities. It is useless to eat.
Some mushroom pickers believe that while the fruiting body of the mushroom is quite young, caps can be used as food in boiled and dried form. But do not take risks – in terms of nutritional value, it ranks last.
Twins and their differences
For inexperienced mushroom pickers, all tinder fungi look about the same. The mushroom has several twins. Among them, the most common are:
- Polyporus variant. It has a characteristic short and thin stem and a lighter cap. Inedible. Has a pleasant smell.
- Trutovik chestnut (Polyporus badius). Differs in more glossy legs and large sizes. It is an inedible mushroom.
Conclusion
Winter tinder fungus is an annual mushroom. Appears in deciduous, mixed forests, on roads. Grows both alone and in families. It is an inedible specimen.