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Photos and descriptions of lacticiferous mushrooms should be studied by every novice mushroom picker. This genus includes several hundred mushroom species, and some of them are very common in the forests of Russia.
General description of lacticians
Milky mushrooms, or lamellar mushrooms from the Russula family, are called Lactarius in Latin and are translated as “milk” or “milk-giving.” They can vary greatly in appearance. Most often they have a plate-like cap and a centrally located stem without a cover; in some varieties the stem is thick and short. The cap of the mushroom genus is usually flat, slightly concave or funnel-shaped, with plates on the lower surface descending onto the stalk.
The genus Lactarius has several hundred species, both edible and inedible.
Fruiting bodies vary widely in color and can be white and olive-black, grayish and bluish, yellow and orange, brown and brown. The color depends on the specific variety. Likewise, the skin on the surface of the cap may be dry and velvety or sticky and sticky.
The most common types of milkweeds
Due to the large species diversity, it is impossible to give a clear general description of fungi of this genus. Therefore, mushroom pickers should carefully study the photos and descriptions of lactiferous species so as not to confuse them with each other.
Ordinary (Gladysh)
Gladysh, or common milkweed, is a medium-sized mushroom with a flat or slightly concave cap. Its surface is smooth, sticky in rainy weather, the leg is cylindrical, gray-yellow or almost white.
The color is usually violet-gray when young and brown-pink or gray-pink when mature. The pulp is brittle and light, with a fruity aroma, the juice of the smoothie is white, and when exposed to air it turns greenish-gray. The species is classified as edible, although it requires soaking and cooking. It can be collected from August to mid-autumn.
Oak (zonal)
The oak, or zonal milkweed, or turf, has first a flat-convex and then a funnel-shaped cap of a red-brown or brownish-red hue. The smooth cylindrical leg rises 3-6 cm above the ground and is the same in color as the cap.The skin is dry and may become a little sticky in humid weather.
When scrapped, the oak milkweed is light brown, with whitish sap that does not change color upon contact with air. The smell of the pulp is unpleasant and resembles the aroma of a bug. Despite this, the milkweed mushroom is edible and suitable for pickling. It is collected in the forests from July to the end of October.
Camphor
Camphor milkweed is a small-sized fruiting body with a prostrate or slightly depressed cap with ribbed edges. The color is reddish brown, the surface is matte and smooth. The stem of the fruiting body is the same color as the cap and is velvety in the upper part, the plates are frequent, pinkish, darkening in maturity.
It is classified as edible and is used for pickling, and can be collected in August and September.
Milkman
Euphorbia or milkweed looks like a lamellar mushroom with a prostrate and slightly concave cap up to 16 cm in diameter. The edges of the cap are even and thin, the surface is dry and smooth, and the color of the fruiting bodies is brownish-brown, reddish-brown, sometimes light ocher or rusty. In dry weather, the skin of the milkweed often cracks.
The leg is paler than the main fruiting body, the flesh is white or yellowish, dense, with a distinct herring odor. The milky sap is white and quickly turns brown and thickens in air.
The milkweed is suitable for human consumption and grows from July to mid-October.
Twisty (Serushka)
The tortuous milkweed, or Serushka, has a funnel-shaped, uneven cap with a tubercle in the middle, grayish in color with a leaden tint.On the cap you can see narrow, widely diverging circles of a dark color. The plates below are sparse and thick, the stem is dense and slightly lighter in color.
The pulp of the serushka is whitish, dense, abundantly secreting a watery milky juice that does not change color when in contact with air. The species is considered conditionally edible and is used in pickling, and it must be collected from mid-summer to the end of autumn.
Golden
The golden milkweed, or golden-yellow milk mushroom, has an outstretched cap covered with smooth matte skin. You can see dark spots on its surface; the cap itself is yellow-ocher in color. The leg is whitish, with a gradual transition to a pink-orange hue, the plates are white in young fruiting bodies and pink in adults.
The golden variety has fragile white flesh without a characteristic odor; when broken, it releases a milky juice that quickly turns yellow in the air. The species is not suitable for human consumption; it has a very pungent bitter taste. You can meet it from mid-summer to late autumn.
Milky Mayor
In the photo and in the description of edible lacticaria mushrooms you can see the Mayor's lacticaria; it is distinguished by an outstretched cap, covered with a smooth and dry skin of a light cream color. On the surface, diverging circles of pinkish or clayey color are noticeable; along the edges you can see low fluff, slightly reminiscent of thorns or short needles. The diameter of the apex is about 12 cm, the leg rises 4 cm above the ground and is usually cream or creamy yellow in color.
The flesh of the fruiting bodies is whitish, dense, with a distinct fruity aroma. The species is edible and consumed in any form, and it is collected from early to mid-autumn.
Brownish
The brownish milkweed is easily recognized by its funnel-shaped cap with thin wavy edges, about 10 cm wide. The color is usually gray-brown or brown, darker in the center. The surface of the skin is dry and smooth, slightly velvety; sometimes in dry weather, pale spots appear on the cap. The stem is rounded with a thickening towards the base, about 6 cm high, the same color as the cap.
The pulp is dense, creamy, and turns pink when cut. White milky juice, protruding abundantly from the pulp, acquires a red tint upon contact with air. The edible milkweed mushroom is eaten even without soaking and pre-cooking; its taste is good. It needs to be collected from July to early October.
Gray pink
The gray-pink milkweed is distinguished by a pinkish-brown tint of the fruiting body. The cap is funnel-shaped with a tubercle in the middle and rolled edges, the plates are whitish and descend to the stem.
The light yellow flesh of this species emits a spicy aroma reminiscent of chicory. However, the species is usually not used for food; it is toxic and inedible. You can meet the gray-pink variety from August to the end of September.
Non-caustic (orange)
The non-caustic milkweed can be recognized by its apricot-colored funnel-shaped cap, dry and velvety. The stem does not differ in color from the rest of the fruiting body, it is dense, and hollow in mature mushrooms. The pulp is bright orange, does not have a characteristic odor and abundantly secretes white milky juice, and the juice does not change its color from contact with air.
The mushroom grows from mid-July until the last days of October. The conditionally edible species can be used for pickling after soaking and cooking.
Fragrant
The fragrant milkweed has a flattened, slightly depressed cap with rolled up edges. The color is usually flesh-gray, white at the break, with a coconut aroma and white milky juice, which does not change color due to contact with air.
The leg is slightly lighter, smooth and loose, the plates are thin and frequent, flesh-colored. The mushroom is classified as conditionally edible and can be eaten salted, pickled or fresh after a short boiling. It needs to be collected from August to the end of October.
Sticky (slimy)
The slimy or sticky milkweed has a slightly depressed, sticky cap of olive, brownish or gray color with a tucked edge. The diameter does not exceed 10 cm, the plates on the underside are white and frequent. The stem of the mushroom is up to 8 cm tall, dense and lighter in color. When broken, the mushroom releases abundant white juice, which turns olive green in the air. The pulp is white and dense.
The milkweed variety is suitable for pickling after soaking, and the mushroom should be collected from July to the end of September.
Zoneless
The zoneless milkweed has a flat, slightly depressed cap with smooth edges and dry, velvety skin. The color of the mushroom is sandy, brown, light or dark brown, with narrow running plates in the lower part. The leg is cylindrical and dense, up to 9 cm in height, usually the same color as the cap or slightly lighter.
The flesh of the mushroom is light, dense in structure, pinkish when cut, with a light spicy aroma. The milky juice of the mushroom is white and quickly turns pink-orange in color when exposed to air.Zoneless milkweed belongs to the edible category and is suitable for pickling and salting at a young age. It needs to be collected from July to the last days of September.
Spiky
The spiny milkweed is a small mushroom with a matte and dry reddish-pink cap, flat-convex in shape. Dark concentric circles are noticeable on the surface of the cap; the stem of the mushroom is round or slightly flattened, only up to 5 cm in height.
The flesh of the mushroom is brittle, lilac in color, with a sharp, unpleasant aroma and white milky juice that turns green in the air. The spiny variety is not poisonous, but is inedible and is not used as food. Fruiting bodies grow from August to October.
Sweetish (Rednushka)
Sweet milkweed, or Redneck, is distinguished by the reddish-red color of its outstretched cap with rolled up edges. The leg is low, slightly lighter than the cap, the flesh is whitish with abundant milky juice, first white, and then watery and translucent.
Rubella grows from mid-summer until the end of October. The sweetish appearance is conditionally edible; it can be used as food, but only after boiling and preferably in salted form.
Poisonous milkmen
There are quite a few frankly toxic and dangerous species among representatives of the genus Lactarius, but there are poisonous lacticaria. If you eat them carelessly, you can be seriously poisoned.
Thyroid milky
You can recognize an inedible mushroom by its slightly concave cap with a mucous surface. The color of the mushroom is ocher-yellow, brownish-yellow, acquiring a brownish-violet or purple hue when pressed. The milky juice of the mushroom is white, turns purple in the air, the same thing happens with the white pulp when it is broken. It is not used as food because it is considered slightly toxic.
Orange milky
The mushroom is small in size with a concave-outstretched bright orange cap and has white or slightly yellowish flesh. The mushroom has a characteristic orange aroma, the milky juice is white and does not change color in air. The surface of the mushroom cap is sticky in wet weather and smooth to the touch. The orange milkweed is not suitable for consumption.
Bitter milky
A small-sized mushroom, also called bittersweet, has a pressed dry cap of an ocher-brown, reddish, reddish or copper hue. The flesh of the mushroom is whitish or creamy, the milky juice is transparent whitish and does not change color from contact with air. The mushroom is inedible and is usually not used as food due to its too strong bitterness and acridity.
Brown-yellow milky
A photo of a poisonous milkweed shows a small mushroom with a flattened cap with dry skin of red-brown, dark orange or orange-brown color. The inedible mushroom has whitish flesh with a pungent aftertaste. The milky juice on the break is white, but quickly turns yellow in the air. The fruiting bodies of this species are not used for food.
Wet milky
A mushroom with a depressed mucous cap has a pale gray or almost white color; concentric circles are faintly visible on the surface of the cap. The juice of the mushroom is white and turns purple very quickly when exposed to air; the flesh is also white and acquires a lilac hue when broken. The mushroom does not have a distinct odor, but the taste is bitter and pungent, and therefore belongs to the category of inedible.
Edible species of laticifers
Although there are poisonous lacticaria, dozens of varieties of mushrooms from this genus are allowed to be used as food. Edible species include:
- ordinary and camphor;
- winding and oaky;
- Mayor's milkweed and milkweed;
- fragrant and non-acidic, or orange;
- zoneless and sticky;
- sweetish and brownish.
To distinguish between edible and inedible species, it is enough to carefully study the photos of mushrooms. In addition, the difference can usually be detected by lightly licking the cut fruit body; inedible mushrooms have an unpleasantly bitter or acrid taste. Since there are no highly toxic representatives of the genus Lactarius, this method of testing mushrooms does not lead to poisoning.
How milkmen are cooked
A photo and description of lactic mushrooms suggests preparing them usually in pickled or salted form. Cold processing of fruiting bodies with plenty of salt, seasonings and spices helps preserve the taste and benefits of mushrooms for a long time, and also eliminates the remnants of a possible unpleasant aftertaste. Fruiting bodies are also suitable for frying, but they are subjected to heat treatment less often.
Most often, milky mushrooms are sent for pickling and pickling.
Where and how do milkweeds grow?
A photo and description of edible and inedible lacticaria mushrooms states that they can be found in Russia throughout the country - in the south and in the middle zone, in Siberia and the Urals, in Primorye. Mushrooms most often grow on moist soils in mixed and coniferous forests.
Most species form mycorrhizae with oaks, birches, spruces and pines. They can often be found in tall grass or mosses, on the edges of swamps and near bodies of water. Fruiting bodies are quite rare in meadows and roadsides.
Conclusion
Photos and descriptions of lacticiferous mushrooms must be studied very carefully - edible and inedible subspecies can be very similar to each other. There are no deadly representatives among the laticifers, but some caution must still be exercised when collecting.
