Monthly Archives: September 2013

27th September 2013, Farningham Wood near Swanley

A marvellous day! Late September is definitely the best time for fungi. Over 30 species including several edible ones and that’s without trying very hard. Lots as yet unidentified but most should be possible to sort them out later. Took 5 types home to eat: Curry Milkcap, Ochre Brittlegill, Bay Bolete (only 1), Common Puffball, and Horn of Plenty. (Had great fun telling people that I had been eating ‘Trumpet of Death Soup’. Very tasty soup just made of vegetable stock, a little fried onion, fried mushrooms, and cream.) The Horn of Plenty was a delight – first time I’ve found it. And there were some Deathcaps, which is always exciting – found a group of large ones hiding under a small oak.


1. Unidentified.
Tiny on stump. Cap 1cm. Difficult to identify as I only saw young ones. Could be young Sulphur Tuft but I don’t think so. Maybe Pholiota astragalina but this is unlikely.

2. Unidentified.
Growing on bare earth under beech. Cap 1-3cm. Smell mushroomy.

3. Curry Milkcap (Lactarius camphoratus).
Growing on earth under beech. Curry smell slight at first but much stronger later. Milk dry and bitter.

5. Glistening Inkcap (Coprinus micaceus).
Growing on beech stump. Cap 2-5cm. Confused by this at first, but now think it’s just older Glistening Inkcap. ID is fairly likely.

6. Glistening Inkcap (Coprinus micaceus).
Growing on beech stump. Glistening Inkcap, growing on the same stump, smaller. ID is very likely.

7. Snapping Bonnet (Mycena vitilis).
Tiny. Snapping Bonnet probably, but could be another Bonnet. ID is fairly likely.

8. Type of Fibrecap.
Looks like a type of Fibrecap but not sure which.

9. Amethyst Deceiver (Laccaria amethystina).
Lots. Probably an Amethyst Deceiver although I didn’t think so in the field. ID is fairly likely.

10. Unidentified.
Growing on huge sweet-chestnut tree. Medium 3cm and small/tiny jelly-like fruiting bodies.

11. Unidentified.
Growing on earth. Cap 1.5cm. White cap.

12. Pluteus ephebeus.
Growing near oak, but other trees around. Cap 8cm. Slightly perfumed smell. ID is fairly likely.

13. Type of Amanita.

14. Ochre Brittlegill (Russula ochroleuca).

15. Bay Bolete (Boletus badius).
ID is almost sure.

16. Type of Russula.
Lots. Fairly big. No smell. Dark grey Russula? No smell.

17. Purple Russula (Russula atropurpurea).
Old Purple Brittlegill. ID is very likely.

18. Brown Rollrim (Paxillus involutus).
Poisonous.

19. Unidentified.
Growing under yew tree. Cap 5cm+. No smell.

20. The Blusher (Amanita rubescens).
ID is very likely.

21. Unidentified.
Growing under yew. Cap 2-3cm. Buggy smell.

22. Type of Russula.
Very hot taste. Red/pink Russula.

23. Aniseed Funnel (Clitocybe odora).
Growing directly leaf litter. Strong smell even with nose 1 foot away. Edible but I didn’t bother.

24. White False Deathcap (Amanita citrina).
Lots. Cap 5-8cm. Smell faintly of raw potato? ID is very likely.

25. Red Cracking Bolete (Boletus chrysenteron).

26. Curry Milkcap (Lactarius camphoratus).
Under oak. Only a little milk.

27. Wood Bolete (Buchwaldoboletus lignicola).
Growing from dead wood. Colour for this species should be paler, but this is the only boletus that grows on dead wood. ID is best guess.

28. Unidentified.

29. Sulphur Knight (Tricholoma sulphureum).
Growing on rotten wood? Not sure. Cap up to 8cm. Strong smell of paint – very strange! The book says Sulphur Knight smells of gas tar but I’m not familiar with that lovely aroma. ID is fairly likely.

30. Jelly Ear (Auricularia auricula-judae).
Jelly Ear or similar. ID is fairly likely.

31. Common Puffball (Lycoperdon perlatum).

32. Type of Webcap.
Webcaps are generally poisonous.

34. Unidentified.
Big. No smell.

35. Horn of Plenty (Craterellus cornucopioides).

36. Deathcap (Amanita phalloides).
About 6. Small one under hornbeam, then lots under an oak.

22th September 2013, Ladywell Fields

Some more Horse Mushrooms growing in the park. Plus some small, quite striking, Collybia Inodora growing in the short grass near a beech tree. Couldn’t identify this when I was relying upon Roger Phillips, but then managed to find it in my new Buczacki book.


1. Horse Mushroom (Agaricus arvensis).
Growing in grass. ID is almost sure.

2. Collybia Inodora.
Growing in grass near beech. White with distinctive brown centre. Grows on rotten wood, but sometimes appears to be growing on soil if wood is buried. ID is almost sure.

20th September 2013, Andrew’s Wood near Shoreham

Hurrah, lots different mushrooms! Yarboo, nothing obviously edible or in enough quantity. Had a very good look on the patch of ground where I’ve found Ceps before, but nothing at all this year. Still, very pleasing to be able to identify the majority of my finds, even if a few of them are not so certain.


1. Leopard Earthball (Scleroderma areolatum).

2. Unidentified.

3. The Blusher (Amanita rubescens).
Dozens. Edible, but I choose not to eat any amanitas! ID is very likely.

4. Sulphur Tuft (Hypholoma fasciculare).

5. White False Deathcap (Amanita citrina).
ID is .

6. Olive Brittlegill (Russula olivacea).
ID is almost sure.

7. Unidentified.

8. Grey Spotted Amanita (Amanita Excelsa).
ID is very likely.

9. Dripping Bonnet (Mycena rorida).
Tiny cap less than 5mm across. Possibly could be another kind of Bonnet. ID is very likely.

10. Parrot Waxcap (Hygrocybe psittacina).
This was a very pretty sight growing in a meadow next to the wood. ID is almost sure.

11. Unidentified.
Growing in a meadow.

12. Stinkhorn (Phallus impudicus).
Past their prime, but the jelly egg at the base is still there.

13. Ochre Brittlegill (Russula ochroleuca).

15. Rooting Shank (Xerula radicata).
Very big specimen; about 20cm high.

16. Mild Milkcap (Lactarius subdulcis).
The taste of the milk was mild at first then became bitter after about 20 seconds. ID is best guess.

17. Unidentified.
Growing under yew tree.

18. Unidentified.
Growing on dead yew tree. About 20cm across. Should be easy to identify (when I have time) as the underside was furry.

19. Type of Milkcap.
Growing under pine.

20. Slippery Jack (Suillus luteus).
ID is almost sure.

21. Purple Russula (Russula atropurpurea).
This had a very easily broken stem. I’ve found it on this patch of ground before. ID is very likely.

22. Lactarius fluens.
Growing under beech. Milk gushed from the damaged gills; dripping onto the forest floor. ID is fairly likely.

23. Stump Puffball (Lycoperdon pyriforme).

24. Blotched Woodwax (Hygrophorus eburneus).
Edible but not worth the bother. ID is very likely.

25. Unidentified.
There were lots of these large grey/black mushrooms but they were all too old and decrepit for easy identification.

7th September 2013, Ladywell Fields near Catford

It’s Autumn! I was just wandering around the park without a camera and found the a few odds and ends, so took them home.

This Russula was growing close to a large Beech and I’ve tentatively identified it as Olive Brittlegill. I could easily be wrong. It’s a sort of lilac-brown, not olive coloured, but colour can be misleading with Russulas and it was growing under a beech. There’s several Russulas that are allied with beech trees and this seems the most likely, although it is uncommon. The photo seems to show cross-connections between the gills (which I didn’t notice at the time) and Olive Brittlegill has these near the stem. The book says it’s very similar to Russula alutacea and they’re both edible, but my id was much too shaky for munching.

There were three smallish Agricus mushrooms growing near a Horse Chestnut. Definitely some species of Agricus but I can’t decide which. Two of them were quite maggoty but the last was young and fresh

There’s a small patch in the park where these large Horse Mushrooms always come up, and there were lots this year. Unfortunately it’s right next to a busy footpath so they nearly always get kicked over before they can mature. But I took this one home and had a very tasty snack.


1. Charcoal Burner (Russula cyanoxantha).
Close to large beech. Photo seems to show cross-connections between the gills. Cross-connections between gills is not a characteristic of the Charcoal Burner but I still think this id is more likely. ID is best guess.

2. Type of Agaricus.
Three smallish Agricus mushrooms growing near a Horse Chestnut. Three. Smallish. Definitely some species of Agricus but I can’t decide which.

3. Horse Mushroom (Agaricus arvensis).
Growing in grass. Eaten. ID is almost sure.