Lepista Sordida - a type of Wood Blewit

[Henwoman]

According to page 89 of River Cottage Handbook No. 1 Mushrooms, the following photos which I took this afternoon in the lane leading to my hamlet, look absolutely like Lepista Sordida which are some of the other blewits which taste just as good. The fungi are each about 8"-9"/20-23cm across.

Blewits in the lane.jpg (238.79 KiB) Viewed 3535 times

Blewit.jpg (168.49 KiB) Viewed 3535 times

Reader, I did not pick these, as I am still too cautious to eat something only I have identified, but I'll remember where they were for next year in case I have a collaborator by then.

[irigg]

i have had these coming up all over my garden and wondered myself if they are edible

[Millymollymandy]

They look familiar to me too! (but no idea what they are)

[Carltonian Man]

First impressions I’d agree with you Henwoman, they do look like a blewit, but I’m glad you’re treading carefully. L Sordida is listed in my books as being smaller than L Nuda (wood blewit) and should only be about 10cm (4”) across. Also the gills in your photos are giving me the niggles. Maybe it’s just that particular specimen, but I’d expect them to be darker.
What do they smell of. An older lepista fruitbody that has taken up plenty of rain will probably smell very slightly fragrant with just a hint of chalk and a pleasant overall smell of the forest floor.
I’m guessing from the photos that you’re like me and don’t like to pick things unless you know you’ll use them, but to help with later identification it might be worthwhile cutting a couple of samples from top to bottom and photographing, take a spore print too (for a pale spored shroom use half white paper and half dark paper). Also, if you can, check out a couple of very young fruitbodies, again photos will allow you to keep referring back.
Good luck with it and keep us posted

PS lovely photos

[Carltonian Man]

Some decent pics of wood blewies on an earlier ish post here http://www.selfsufficientish.com/forum/ ... 53&t=24933
Don’t know if they’ll help any

[Millymollymandy]

I was in my orchard yesterday and had a good look at the huge 'fairy ring' which comes up every autumn - it was these fungi!!!!

[fungi2bwith]

I would say the gills are the wrong colour for blewits, Sordida and nuda are very difficult to tell apart but I would say these pictures are neither blewit.

Garry

[fungi2bwith]

They may be old clouded agarics.

[Millymollymandy]

From googling I would say that those fungi in the photos and the ones in my orchard are not blewits either. That's about as far as I can get with ID!