Mushrooming: An Illustrated Guide to the Fantastic, Delicious, Deadly, and Strange World of Fungi

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In Mushrooming, Diane Borsato writes about several contemporary artists and designers whose work is inspired by fungus. Among them is Katie Bethune-Leamen.(Kelsey Oseid/Courtesy of Diane Borsato) OK, so yeah! You're also noticing how popular mushrooms seem to be these days. Why are people drawn to mushrooms right now? Wild Mushrooming is beautifully illustrated throughout with Alison’s luminous photography – the photos are a wonderful combination of beauty and scientific illustration... Wild Mushrooming is a wonderful primer on the world of fungi and is a welcome and vital addition to any fungus-lover’s bookshelf, and highly recommended." Familiarity with information about deadly mushrooms that are look-alikes of edible ones is mandatory, as "deadly twins" differ regionally. Unlike button and paddy mushrooms, this type of mushroom can be grown on farm wastes high in cellulosic content like cotton waste, banana pseudostems, cereal straws, etc. However, the most commonly used substrate is paddy straw. Growth Techniques

Mushroom hunting can be associated with significant health risks if done without caution since many mushrooms that are safe for consumption have lethally poisonous lookalikes. Even when consuming a poisonous mushroom does not result in death, some can still cause permanent organ damage. [7] Mushroom poisoning has killed an average of 3 people a year in the United States from 1999 to 2016. [8] According to National Poison Data System (NPDS) annual reports published by America's Poison Centers, the average number of deaths occurring over a ten year period (2012-2020) sits right at 3 a year. [9] In 2012, 4 out of the 7 total deaths that occurred that year, were attributed to a single event where a "housekeeper at a Board and Care Home for elderly dementia patients collected and cooked wild Amanita mushrooms into a sauce that she consumed with six residents of the home." [10] One of Kelsey Oseid's gouache illustrations for Mushrooming: The Joy of the Quiet Hunt, a new book by Toronto artist Diane Borsato.(Kelsey Oseid/Courtesy of Diane Borsato) Sections on where, when and how to find fungi guide the forager in the identification of 10 edible species. Diagnostic information on toxic fungi and lookalike species helps to differentiate the desirable from the deadly. Wild Mushrooming then takes us into the kitchen with cooking techniques and 29 recipes from a variety of cuisines that can be adapted for both foraged and cultivated fungi. And yet, the book features chapters on several contemporary artists who are inspired by mushrooms. Why did you want to fuse the field guide aspect of the book with what's happening in art and design? a b c d e f g Arora, David (1986). Mushrooms demystified: a comprehensive guide to the fleshy fungi (2nded.). Berkeley: Ten Speed Press. ISBN 0-89815-170-8. OCLC 13702933.Yet as amazing as mushrooms are, they are just the above-ground extensions of the fungi below. The fungal world is a wild and fascinating place, and has shaped our environment in ways that we are only beginning to understand. The eight books below explore the Fungi Kingdom, sketch out its relationship to the human world, and reveal its paramount significance to life on this zany planet. Mycelium Running: How Mushrooms Can Help Save the World by Paul Stamets Each mushroom named in the book has identifying features, notes, and their edibility. This should not be taken as the ultimate guide to whether you should consume them, as there are variables in some of them. Even touching certain ones may cause health concerns. The Gyromitra esculenta is considered poisonous, but can be consumed if dried and stored for over a year according to Slavic literature. It can be used to supplement or replace morel (see Morchellaceae below) mushrooms, while Western literature claims that even the fumes of the mushroom are dangerous. It is similar to morels both in appearance and palatability. It is a book I have dipped into several times while trying to identify some of the many Agaricus species that grow in my area. I will continue to use it as I try some of the recipes, and as a beautiful resource in training new amateur field mycologists."

Eugenia Bone’s Mycophilia is a love letter to the fungal world and the mushroom foraging community. Having served as president of the New York Mycological Society, Bone knows this community intimately. Therefore, her book details the gamut of foragers: from amateur enthusiasts out on the trails to the hardcore finders who are part of the commercial industry. Along the way, she provides a social history of mushroom use in cooking and medicine. However, the best parts of Mycophilia are seeing Bone in action. She documents her travels with foragers, conversations with restaurateurs and those in the industry, and, most importantly, her unabashed love of mushrooms. The Way Through the Woods: On Mushrooms and Mourning by Long Litt Woon There are two types of growth techniques followed in oyster mushroom cultivation. 1. Polythene Bags Mushroom farming in polythene bags The genus Suillus, characterised by its slimy cap, is another prized mushroom, the Suillus luteus and Suillus granulatus being its most common varieties, and while abundant in some parts of Eurasia, is a rare occurrence in others. It is easy to identify and very palatable.Morphological characteristics of the caps of mushrooms are essential for correct visual mushroom identification. Numerous field guides on mushrooms are available and recommended to help distinguish between safe and edible mushrooms, and the many poisonous or inedible species. Lake Quinault Lodge in Washington's Olympic National Forest – Quinault Rain Forest Mushroom Festival Great illustrations and a lot of personal touches make this a compelling read. Should not be considered a field guide. The first step for growing mushrooms is composting which is done in the open. Compost yard for button mushroom cultivation is prepared on clean, raised platforms made of concrete. They must be raised so that the run-off water does not get accumulated at the heap. Although the composting is done in the open, they must be covered to protect from rain. Compost prepared is of two types, viz. natural and synthetic compost. The compost is prepared in trays of dimensions 100 X 50 X 15 cm. Synthetic Compost for Mushroom Farming

Wild Mushrooming: A Guide for Foragers is the first guidebook to provide comprehensive information about the edibility of fungi found in Australia. The timing is significant as it reflects both a growing mycological knowledge and the groundswell of interest in foraging for wild food. Tricholoma magnivelare is a prized mushroom in North America. British Columbia exports large quantities of this mushroom overseas to Asia where it is in high demand. [29] Amanita muscaria's psychotropic properties have been traditionally used by shamans in their rituals. Mushrooming also involves smelling things, sometimes nibbling things. You have to pay attention to when in the season things appear, and relationships to other things — what trees and other plants and things are nearby? And so it really brings you into a close awareness of where you are and engages so many of your senses. Members of the genus Lactarius, as the name suggests, lactate a milky liquid when wounded and are often scoffed upon [ clarification needed] by Western literature. The Lactarius deliciosus is however regarded as one of the most palatable mushrooms in Slavic culture, comparable to the Boletus edulis. Also considered as similarly palatable are the species Lactarius necator and particularly Lactarius resimus. Thermal treatment may however be necessary in some cases. The Lactarius pubescens has a less appealing, bitter taste.

Highly poisonous Conocybe filaris and some Galerina species can resemble and grow alongside hallucinogenic Psilocybe species. Psilocybe semilanceata (Псилоциба Сосочковидная [Psilotsiba Sosochkovidnaya] - Nipple-Like Psylocybe; Liberty Cap) Drovers Egg and Mushroom Pie recipe contributed to Wild Mushrooming by Pete Munro (photo: Alison Pouliot) Wild Mushrooming: A Guide for Foragers melds scientific and cultural knowledge with stunning photography to present a new way of looking at fungi. It models 'ecological foraging' – an approach based on care, conservation and a deep understanding of ecosystem dynamics.

The morel, Morchella esculenta is highly prized in Western Europe, India and North America. It is significantly less prized in Slavic countries where it is considered marginally edible with mediocre palatability. Boiling the mushroom and discarding the water is often recommended. The Cantharellus cibarius is a common and popular mushroom in Europe. It is edible and highly palatable. It is very rarely infested by worms or larvae, has a unique appearance, and when rotting, the decomposed parts are easily distinguishable and separable from those that are edible.

Featured Reviews

Mushrooming...my favourite activity. As a mycophile I dream about fungi, ID and analyze them, forage for them, attend mushroom festivals and learn everything I possibly can get my hands on. Diane Borsato's Mushrooming is a beautifully-illustrated book about 100+ fungi and connections we make with them in life, nature and art. Mushrooming offers a new perspective on the fascinating, edible, deadly and strange world of fungi, from candy caps to earth stars, puff balls to poison pie, prized chanterelles, morels, hedgehogs and the bloodless destroying angel. There are mushrooms named after fairies and demons, little brown mushrooms that are wildly hallucinogenic, phallic specimens prized as aphrodisiacs, and mushrooms that are the colour of precious jewels. Some mushrooms look so much like woodland birds they are shot at by hunters, and others, incredibly, glow in the dark.