Resinous black milky (Lactarius picinus) photo and description

Resinous black milkweed (Lactarius picinus)

• Mlechnik smolyanoy;
• Resinous black breast;
• Lactiferous pitch.

Resinous black milky (Lactarius picinus) is a fungus from the Russula family, which is part of the milky genus.

External description of the fungus

The fruiting body of the resinous-black lactiferous consists of a matte hat of chocolate-brown, brown-brown, brown, black-brown hue, as well as a cylindrical stem, expanded and rather dense, which is initially full inside.

The diameter of the cap varies between 3-8 cm, initially it is convex, sometimes a sharp tubercle is visible in its center. There is a slight fringe along the edges of the cap. In mature mushrooms, the cap becomes slightly depressed, acquiring a flat-convex shape.

The stem of the mushroom is 4-8 cm long and 1-1.5 cm in diameter; in mature mushrooms, it is hollow from the inside, of the same color as the cap, white at the base, and brown-brown on the rest of the surface.

The hymenophore is represented by a lamellar type, the plates descend slightly down the stem, are frequent and have a large width. Initially they are white, later they acquire an ocher hue. Mushroom spores have a light ocher color.

Mushroom pulp is white or yellow, very dense, under the influence of air on bruised areas it can turn pink. The milky juice also has a white color and a bitter taste, when exposed to air it changes color to red.

Habitat and fruiting period

The fruiting of this type of mushroom enters the active phase in August, and continues until the end of September. Resinous black milkweed (Lactarius picinus) grows in coniferous and mixed forests with pine trees, occurs singly and in groups, sometimes grows in grass. The degree of occurrence in nature is minimal.

Edibility

Resinous-black milky is often referred to as conditionally edible mushrooms, or completely inedible. Some sources, on the contrary, say that the fruit body of this species is edible.

Similar species, distinctive features from them

The resinous black lactifer (Lactarius picinus) has a similar species called the brown lactic (Lactarius lignyotus). Its leg is darker in comparison with the described species. There is also a similarity with the brown lactic, and sometimes the resinous black lactic is attributed to a variety of this fungus.