The Mushroom Rainbow
Written and illustrated by Irina Entin
Copyright 2011 by Irina Entin
Smashwords Edition
Smashword Edition, License Notes
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This book is intended to aid in preliminary identification and familiarization with a small subset of wild mushrooms. All mushroom guides should be used in conjunction with several other sources such as those listed in the suggested readings at the back of this guide and/or an expert. The author cannot be held responsible for any effects whatsoever which may arise from ingesting wild mushrooms.
Table of contents
This guide is intended to serve as an initial field reference for novice mushroom hunters; it is by no means an exhaustive catalogue. It highlights only the most delicious and easily distinguishable mushrooms of the northeast and their lookalikes as well as the most deadly species of the northeast. White to brown convex gilled mushrooms are not included and not recommended to non-expert pickers due to similarities to deadly mushrooms. Always verify your identification with several sources and never ingest a mushroom if you are not 100% sure of its identity.
Mushroom hunting is a great pastime long practiced in many cultures but still largely overlooked in North America. Fresh mushrooms picked in the wild are free from the additives and pesticides we find in our every-day food, making them a healthy and delicious alternative to the usual fare.
Many cultures have long used certain mushrooms in homeopathic healing and their effects have been studied for use in modern medicine for neurological diseases, blood pressure and cholesterol, cancer, and many other diseases.
For more information on mushrooms, see the bibliography at the end of this book.
The Mushroom Rainbow is a go-to book to preliminarily identify mushrooms of culinary interest without an extensive mycological background. It describes the most important differentiating features between edible and poisonous mushrooms and lists mushrooms by their scientific names to simplify cross-referencing. The book also includes the most deadly mushrooms which the reader must take care to avoid.
Potentially
deadly
Causes
unpleasant and/or dangerous symptoms
You will notice that the mushrooms featured in this book are hand-drawn in a simplistic manner. This is to avoid a reliance on visual identification using a photo of a single specimen, an unreliable and dangerous method. The aim is to focus the reader on the most important features of the mushroom.