Beacon Wood with the Kent Field Club

The group found several individual fruiting bodies of the yellow Tricholoma associated with Aspen and maybe other Populus species, Tricholoma frondosae. Other trees have also been linked as ectomycorrhizal partners, but the group seemed to think the Aspen link was the most important. This also looks very like the Tricholoma equestre associated with Pines and other conifers, and they were thought to be just one joint species until 2001. Note the scales?

Phlebia tremellosa - note the spiky and often pale edge and perhaps just the start of the wiggly folds:

And here the spiky hairs are far more fully developed

Phlebia radiata, on Birch. Orange (not pale), unfringed edge helps to distinguish it

A fairly typical showing of old Datronia mollis or now Podofomes mollis. Should bruise brown and also cutting should show a dark line between the fungus and substrate. These are older fruiting bodies or patches, showing the now elongated maze-like pores in response to gravity. Note the small blackened decayed patch in the middle of the image!

This is one of the more identifiable Bonnets, Mycena pseudocorticola, the Steely Bonnet, not uncommon on moss-covered trees apparently.

This is a very large Mycena galericulata - see the cross-linking between the veins:

Ascocoryne sarcoides, s.l. inc cylichnium

Chlorociboria aeruginascens s.l. inc aeruginosa. Unusual on Birch I believe

Some areas of the park are covered in Cladonia, Reindeer Moss

List of Boletes

 

Boletus edulis - Cep - at Plodda Falls and 

Caloboletus radicans - Rooting Bolete - with Oak at Dene Park and Mote Park

Imleria badius - Bay Bolete - with Western Hemlock at Snipe Wood

Neoboletus praestigiator - at Dunorlan Park

Suillelus queletii - at Tudeley Woods

Tylopilus felleus - Bitter Bolete - at Ightham Mote 

Suillus bovinus - Bovine Bolete - with Pine at Plodda Falls and Tudeley Woods

Suillus collinitus - with Pine at Monkton reserve with KFC

Suillus grevillei - Larch Bolete - with Larch at Tomich and Snipe Wood with KFC

Xerocomus chrysonemus?

Hortiboletus rubellus - Ruby Bolete - near Oak at Dunorlan

Xerocomellus chrysenteron - Red Cracking Bolete - 

Xerocomellus pruinatus - Matte Bolete at Snipe Wood

Leccinum auriantiacum? - with Oak? at Tudeley Wood

Leccinum duriusculum - Hever Castle

Leccinum versipelle - with Birch at Tudeley? and Snipe Wood

Leccinum scabrum - with Birch at Tudeley and Snipe Woods 

Tunbridge Wells Cemetery

 

The Ugly Milkcap, Lactarius turpis or now Lactarius necator.  As far as I know this is the first time I have seen this, although I remain confused as I was previously connecting this term to Lactarius controversus.

There were a number of now dark brownish to black capped medium to very large milkcaps (to 15 cm or so) on the roots of one of the large Birch trees. The colour when younger should be a sort of olive. Maybe this was the one that Martin picked up? The trees here are certainly worth looking at for notable designation on the ATI. 

Lactarius turpis has been recorded a number of times on this site since 2005 so it is probably mycorrhizal on a number of the Birches around. Interesting that I only saw it on this one tree though!

The specimen in this photo was showing quite a lot of browning on the gills, so fits that character. The very black of the cap indicates the over-maturity of the fruiting bodies. Stem should be hollow, flesh brittle. I didn't taste much milk - a little old I thought, but it was extremely and persistently burning hot. KOH showed the violet very quickly and pleasingly. Its not what I would describe as Birch in "Wet" Woodland though, as described in UK books/websites, but I was glad to see not in FOTE.

This is the Birch Knight, Tricholoma fulvum. "Knights" are rather like "Shields" in someone's  imagination at least, with a central umbo, a bit rough but sticky when wet and as it ages with radial streaks around the edge. Bright(ish) yellow gills, unusual for a Knight which normally have white gills, with brown mottling on them as the cap ages. Stem yellow with brown fibres. Yellow fibrous stem flesh and gills contrasts with white cap flesh, maybe a floury smell when fresh cut. The species generally seems to like Birches on wet soil.

Following the theme of fungi associated with Birches, here is the Brown Birch Bolete, Leccinum scabrum, which I hope I am getting a bit more familiar with. It is a bit hammered, interestingly.

This is the other Bolete we saw, which MIGHT be the genuine Xerocomellus chrysenteron which is now thought to be mostly found under conifers - here these are found under Cedar and (I think) also Lawson Cypress from the debris. The other species recorded are cisalpinus and porosporus.

Moving on to the clubs and spindles, here is what I think should be the Yellow Club, Clavulinopsis helvola, which is a bit smaller and less clumpy than Golden Spindles, Clavulinopsis fusiformis.  Cylindrical unbranched, slightly clavate. Watch out for Clavulinopsis luteoalbis slightly more orange normally. 

There was a white club, probably Clavaria fragilis, in clumpier groups than some other clubs. There are several other options, less clumpy less trooping, with no clear dividing line between these species, although microscopy can help. Possible slight iodine scent..

So the third was just the one patch on one grave, Smoky Spindles, Clavaria fumosa, quite a bit bigger than the "clubs". This seems to be a reasonably reliable identification, as far as I can tell, with its distinctive colour (this can vary a bit) and concolourous flesh, no odour or taste and browned off tips. It is usually cylindrical and unflattened, unridged.

The cemetery was waxcap heaven.  

This was the first one I thought I understood, the Scarlet Waxcap, Hygrocybe coccinea, with its perhaps slight yellowish edge. It is not as big or chunky as the Crimson Waxcap, Hygrocybe punicea, which we found later, with a red to orange-yellow stem, especially in the lower half. Stem cylindric but often compressed, matt to silky with fragile flesh. Common and widespread.

Waxcaps at Hengoed Isa

 Nice to see some waxcaps on the garden lawn, here is the first, unknown fungus at least as far as I can tell,

Parrot Waxcaps, varying amount of green,  

Slimy Waxcap, Gliophorus irrigatus, looking good

Ivory Bonnet, Mycena flavoalba, 

Dene Park

In Dene Park I think, this is Clustered Bonnet, Mycena inclinata around the base of this tree. Note the strong umbos, the caps furrowing nearly to the centre, the crenellated margin and the white fluff around the base of the un-furrowed stems.

Milkcap possibly Lactarius quietus linked to Oak or Lactarius pyrogallus linked commonly to Hazel.

and a Brittlegill that might not be possibly Russula cyanoxantha or perhaps Russula parazurea

Black footed Polypore at Cobtree Manor

One of the Blackfooted Polypores, Polyporus leptocephalus. Small to large, tan brown, cap should be radially fibrillose and not darker in the centre. 6 - 9 pores per mm, pale-grey pores perhaps, very thin white flesh maybe, wide range of broadleaved trees, common.

A bit old, but nice to see in comparison to the Tuberous Polypore, Polyporus tuberaster and the Bay Polypore, Polyporus badius, which is darker and shiny, pale brown flesh possibly, white pore surface.

Second visit to Oldbury Hill

 

Towards the end of my very quick visit I came across these pale caps which turned out to be either Cortinarius alboviolacea or more likely it now appears, Cortinarius acutispissipes, newly recognised as present in Britain and now (according to the DNA so far) to be the commoner of these two sister species, with slightly larger spores. Very pleased that Geoffrey Kibby confirmed on the Facebook post that I was at least in the right area!