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Albatrellus confluent is an annual mushroom with good edible qualities. To correctly recognize it in the forest, you should study the photographs and descriptions of the mushroom, and also understand what species it may look like.
Where does albatrellus coalesce grow
You can meet the mushroom mainly in Siberia and the Urals on the territory of Russia. Albatrellus grows mainly on acidic soils, it comes across both in coniferous forests among moss, and in mixed plantings. You can meet him one by one, but more often the mushroom grows in large groups of several specimens.
The maximum fruiting occurs in August and early September, and in general, confluent albatrellus grows from early July to early November.
What does an albatrellus confluent look like?
The fused albatrellus is also called the fused albatrellus, as well as the tinder fungus. The name is due to the fact that most often several fruiting bodies grow close to each other, as if growing together with the legs or edges of the cap, which is why they turn into a shapeless mass up to 40 cm in diameter.
The albatrellus hat can have different shapes - rounded, uneven, elongated to one side. The diameter of an individual cap usually does not exceed 15 cm; its surface is smooth at a young age, and rough in an adult, with small scales in the central part. Old mushrooms can crack. The color of the merging tinder fungus is usually cream or yellowish-pinkish, sometimes slightly reddish, with age - red or brown-pink.
The underside of the cap of the mushroom is tubular, white or cream, and after drying it is pink or red-brown. The pores on the underside are different in shape - angular and round, small.
On the stem, the merging tinder fungus usually rises 5-7 cm above the ground. Its leg is fleshy, but brittle, up to 3 cm in diameter, creamy or slightly pinkish in color. The flesh of albatrellus is white and firm at the break, turning reddish when dry.
Is it possible to eat albatrellus confluent
The merging tinder fungus is completely edible. You can even eat it raw, but more often the mushroom is boiled or fried, this allows you to remove from the pulp possible toxins accumulated during growth from the soil.
Mushroom taste
According to connoisseurs, the merging tinder fungus has a rather pleasant taste. It is used not only in assorted mushrooms, but also in a separate form - in hot and cold dishes, in pickling and pickling. The advantage of merging albatrellus is that after processing, its pulp remains pleasantly elastic.
Raw albatrellus has a neutral odor and a slightly sour or bitter taste. When processed, these flavors disappear.
Benefits and harm to the body
Eating the merging tinder fungus in food is good for health - the mushroom has a variety of chemical composition and valuable properties. In particular, when consumed, it:
- strengthens the immune system and makes the body more resistant to viruses and colds;
- has an antitumor effect and serves as the prevention of oncological neoplasms;
- has a mild analgesic effect and helps relieve inflammation;
- improves the functioning of the exchange system;
- prevents the development of anemia and helps build healthy muscle mass.
Albatrellus fused contains a large amount of protein in its composition, therefore it is useful to use it when recovering from severe ailments and with a lack of body weight. On the basis of mushroom pulp, useful tinctures are prepared in water and alcohol, which are used both for internal use and for compresses and rubbing.
As for the contraindications for use, first of all, it is worth abandoning the accrete albatrellus in case of allergies. It is also not recommended to eat it during pregnancy and lactation - accidental poisoning with mushroom pulp can lead to fatal consequences. It is better to exclude merging albatrellus from the diet for chronic ailments of the stomach, liver and with a tendency to frequent constipation - the protein fungus is a rather difficult product to assimilate.
False doubles
The fusing albatrellus is quite different from other species and does not have poisonous siblings. But in the absence of experience, it can be confused with some edible or inedible species, for example, with related tinder fungi.
Sheep tinder
Most of all, the ovine tinder fungus is similar to the merging tinder fungus - a related species, similar to the albatrellus in appearance and size. It also grows sprawlingly and in groups, but unlike a grown together tinder fungus, it usually does not merge into an uneven mass from several fruiting bodies.
Another difference is the color of the fruit bodies. Sheep tinder fungus is usually yellowish on both the upper and lower sides of the cap; when pressed on the tubular surface, it acquires a green tint.
Albatrellus blushing
Another closely related species is the blushing tinder fungus, which has a similar cap and leg structure. It is also characterized by very uneven forms, but the blushing albatrellus rarely grows together with the caps of the fruit bodies, more often the mushrooms are simply located very close to each other.
You can also distinguish species by color. As the name implies, the blushing tinder fungus has an orange-reddish color, darker in the center and lighter towards the edges. Fused albatrellus is usually lighter in color.
The blushing look is usually not eaten. It does not belong to poisonous mushrooms, but it tastes too bitter and therefore not suitable for processing.
Albatrellus crested
This mushroom has the same structure and shape as all other related albatrellus. It is also found in Siberia, which increases the likelihood of confusion with the merging tinder fungus.
But unlike the fused albatrellus, the comb species has a brighter color. His hat is olive brown, rusty reddish, slightly greenish at the edges. The comb tinder fungus is not eaten, because its pulp is too tough, and the taste is unpleasant, although it is not poisonous.
Collection rules
It is better to go to collect merging tinder fungi closer to autumn - mushrooms begin to bear fruit most actively from August to the end of September. It is best to look for them on the territory of Siberia, in the Urals and in the Murmansk region, in other regions the mushroom is found very rarely, and the chance of finding it is small.
It is necessary to collect merging polypores in ecologically clean places located away from major roads, industrial factories, garbage dumps and other contaminated areas. During its growth, the mushroom accumulates well toxins contained in the air, soil and precipitation in the pulp - albatrellus from unfavorable areas can damage health when consumed.
You need to cut the mushroom carefully, trying not to damage its underground part. If you destroy the mycelium, then subsequently the tinder fungus will no longer be able to germinate in the same place.
Use
The merging tinder fungus is suitable for consumption even raw, but in practice, fresh pulp is rarely eaten, it may contain toxins from the soil. Usually the mushroom is boiled before use, for this you need to shake off the adhering debris from it, remove the top skin from the cap with a knife and boil the pulp with salt for about 15-20 minutes.
After boiling, the merging tinder fungus can be processed in any way. The edible mushroom is fried and stewed, added to soups and consumed as a delicious independent dish.
Also, the tinder fungus is suitable for harvesting for the winter. It can be pickled and salted, as well as dried. In the latter case, the mushroom is not washed before drying so that the pulp does not absorb excess water.
Conclusion
Albatrellus confluent is an unusual in appearance, but quite tasty edible mushroom, which grows mainly in the Urals and Siberia. It has many similar, but inedible counterparts, so before collecting, you should study the features of different types of tinder fungus and learn how to distinguish them.
