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A fungus from the genus Basiomycetes, straight-legged melanoleuca, or melanoleuca, belongs to the genus of the same name, the Ryadovkovy family. The Latin name of the species is Melanoleuca strictipes. Young mushroom is often confused with champignons, but they have several differences.
What do straight-legged melanoleucks look like?
The cap is flat, in young specimens it is slightly convex, there is a small tubercle in the center. Its diameter does not exceed 10 cm. The color of the cap of straight-legged melanoleuca is white, with a slight gray tint, in the central part there is a dark spot. The surface is velvety, dry, smooth.
The lower part of the cap is lamellar. Frequent, pale pink plates grow to the stem.
A thin, long leg of a straight-legged melanoleica is located clearly in the center, slightly widened towards the bottom. Its diameter does not exceed 2 cm, length - 10 cm. The color is white or pale gray.
The flesh of straight-legged melanoleica is white, dense, with a characteristic, barely perceptible flour smell.
Spores are thin-walled, colorless, odorless, oblong in shape. There are small warts on their surface. Spore powder of straight-legged melanoleuca pale yellow or cream.
Where do straight-legged melanoleucks grow?
Most often they can be found in mountainous areas, less often - at the foot of the mountains in deciduous forests, in meadows. They prefer soil rich in humus, or decaying wood, are saprotrophs.
Melanoleuca bears fruit profusely from June to October. This species is found on all continents.
Is it possible to eat straight-legged melanoleucks
It is an edible mushroom that is eaten safely. Before serving, heat treatment of straight-legged melanoleuca is required.
False doubles
Inexperienced mushroom pickers often confuse straight-footed melanoleucca with champignons. It is important to remember that the first mushroom is almost never found in the forest, its habitat is mountainous terrain. While the champignon is an inhabitant of coniferous, deciduous and mixed forests in the plain.
The champignon has whitish rings near the cap, the leg is thick. Its plates are gray-pink, in old mushrooms they are black. In melanoleuca, straight-legged plates are white.
Also, straight-legged melanoleuke is similar to some representatives of the Ryadovkovy genus, for example, with striped or short-legged melanoleuca. The latter mushrooms are distinguished by a darker color, the surface of their caps is smooth and glossy.
The pale toadstool is a poisonous, deadly human counterpart of the straight-footed melanoleuca. The main difference between the inedible species is the presence of a dense sac at the base of the leg in the form of an egg.
The cap of the toadstool is not pure white, but with a yellowish or greenish tint. At first it is bell-shaped, later it becomes prostrate. In the upper part of the thick leg, almost under the cap, there is a film ring.
Collection rules
It is better to pick mushrooms in wet weather, after a long rain. Utter-footed melanoleucus can be found in mountainous areas or in pastures, in the soil or on plant debris.
Melanoleuca grows in large families: if you see one mushroom, then there are others nearby.
The mushroom leg of the straight-legged melanoleuca can be twisted or cut off; this does not affect the fruiting of the mycelium.
For fragile, straight-legged fruit bodies, wicker willow baskets are suitable, in which the pulp does not crumble, the aroma and freshness are preserved.
It is not recommended to cut old, rotten, darkened specimens of straight-legged melanoleuca. It is better to eat small, white, dense mushrooms.
Straight-footed melanoleucus is put in the basket only if there is complete confidence in its edibility. At the slightest doubt, it is better to refuse an incomprehensible copy.
Use
After collection, straight-legged melanoleucus is not stored for more than 3 hours. Upon arrival home, they immediately begin to process it. After cleaning, the fruits are poured with cold, slightly salted water, allowed to settle for half an hour. This manipulation will make it possible to better cleanse the straight-legged melanoleuke and bring the worms out, if a specimen eaten by them falls into the basket.
Straight-footed melanoleucus is prepared by subjecting it to heat treatment. Peeled and washed mushrooms are boiled in clean water for 15-20 minutes, the first broth is drained. Then the fruiting body is boiled again, fried or stewed.
You can harvest straight-legged melanoleucus for the winter. It is pickled and rolled up in jars of vinegar. You can also simply dry it, then add it to soups or roasts.
Meloanoleuca straight-legged is suitable for cooking any mushroom dishes: casseroles, sauces, goulash, filling for pies, cutlets, zraz and dumplings. It goes well with sour cream sauce. In a dried, crushed form, the fruit body of the straight-legged is used as a mushroom seasoning.
Conclusion
Straight-footed meloanoleuca is an inhabitant of any part of the world. The fungus prefers mountainous terrain and loose fertile soil. It practically does not occur in the forest on the plain. It belongs to the edible species, it is absolutely safe for humans. Suitable for preparing any mushroom dishes. It is important to carefully read the description of the double-legged melanoleica counterparts so that the poisonous twin does not end up in the basket.
