Sky blue stropharia (Stropharia caerulea)
- Division: Basidiomycota (Basidiomycetes)
- Subdivision: Agaricomycotina (Agaricomycetes)
- Class: Agaricomycetes (Agaricomycetes)
- Subclass: Agaricomycetidae (Agaricomycetes)
- Order: Agaricales (Agaric or Lamellar)
- Family: Strophariaceae (Strophariaceae)
- Genus: Stropharia (Stropharia)
- Type: Stropharia caerulea (Stropharia sky blue)
An interesting mushroom from the Strophariaceae family, which has a beautiful greenish-blue hat.
Distributed in our country, found in North America, Kazakhstan, European countries. Stropharia of this type grows either singly or in small groups. It likes to grow in parks, along roads, in pastures, preferring rotting grass beds, moist soils rich in humus.
In sky blue stropharia, the cap has a conical shape (in young mushrooms), becoming arched with age. The surface is dense, does not shine through.
Color – dull blue, with ocher spots, there may also be greenish tints (especially at the edges).
Volvo or absent, or presented in the form of scales, flakes.
The fungus is lamellar, while the plates are even, arranged with teeth. They have a pronounced segmentation. In young specimens of Stropharia caerulea, the plates are usually gray-brown in color, at a later age they are purple.
Pulp has a soft structure, white-dirty color, a greenish or blue tint may be present.
Leg in the form of a regular cylinder, up to about 10 cm long. There is a ring, but only in young mushrooms, in old ones it is completely absent.
Sky blue stropharia can be seen from June to early November (depending on the weather).
It belongs to the category of edible mushrooms, but is not appreciated by connoisseurs, it is not eaten.