So we've been having kind of a wet, ugly year again, but my wine caps really seem to love that (I missed them last fall entirely because the rain kept me mostly indoors and by the time I saw them they were past usable). They decided to start fruiting last week. When they first emerged, they looked pretty normal, but then there was rain and cold and humidity and they're in an area of dappled shade (not ideal, I know, but the plan was to use that wood chip bed as a kind of nursery to inoculate the 5 dump trucks of wood chips I got in 2016; things happened and I never got the big piles inoculated).
After a day or so, the caps started to look funky, like they were covered in powdery mildew. This isn't the best image of that, but it's the best I could do; it was the next clear day after a rain so the white washed off. See first attachment.
Fast forward a few days, more rain, and now sun. I decided to harvest (even though they're a little bigger than recommended) and I'm wondering if they're safe to eat. When the powdery mildew (or whatever it was) was on the caps, they felt like there was a layer of thick mucous on the surface, a kind of slimy-to-gummy texture as it dried. This is what they looked like today (edited; see 2nd attachment image)
I didn't take the largest caps; underneath those there were tons of smaller babies (3" diameter and smaller).
Has anyone here had this problem before or have any input on it? After cutting the stems off, I ended up with almost two pounds of the small caps and it would really be a shame to waste them, but I super don't want to get sick, either.
I would look at those under a microscope before I decided either way about what to do.
List of Bryant RedHawk's Epic Soil Series Threads We love visitors, that's why we live in a secluded cabin deep in the woods. "Buzzard's Roost (Asnikiye Heca) Farm." Promoting permaculture to save our planet.
Since I don't have a microscope, I'm just going to toss them. Well, not toss, put them on the garden and hope some spores colonize things, but not eat.
I just wish I knew what caused it in the first place. Just bad luck, I guess. That big cluster emerged from under a mat of last year's grass clippings that had been dumped there. And right now everything is still covered in pollen (it's a heavily wooded area), which, combined with all the moisture, would probably provide a great environment for something unwanted to grow, be it bacterial or fungal. I had a fruiting in a full sun bed a week ago (which I also missed because I wasn't expecting it so soon) and, from what I can tell, those mushrooms weren't affected.
Since I don't have a microscope, I'm just going to toss them. Well, not toss, put them on the garden and hope some spores colonize things, but not eat.
I just wish I knew what caused it in the first place. Just bad luck, I guess. That big cluster emerged from under a mat of last year's grass clippings that had been dumped there. And right now everything is still covered in pollen (it's a heavily wooded area), which, combined with all the moisture, would probably provide a great environment for something unwanted to grow, be it bacterial or fungal. I had a fruiting in a full sun bed a week ago (which I also missed because I wasn't expecting it so soon) and, from what I can tell, those mushrooms weren't affected.
giant batch of mushroom slurry coming right up ! that is a wonderful use for something you can't feel safe about !
List of Bryant RedHawk's Epic Soil Series Threads We love visitors, that's why we live in a secluded cabin deep in the woods. "Buzzard's Roost (Asnikiye Heca) Farm." Promoting permaculture to save our planet.
Arch enemy? I mean, I don't like you, but I don't think you qualify as "arch enemy". Here, try this tiny ad: