Parasol mushroom: when and where to pick it

The parasol mushroom is one of the most striking edible mushrooms: its tall stem and wide scaly cap really do look like an open umbrella. Big and meaty, parasols are prized for their flavor, and a fried cap is a delicacy all on its own. But dangerous look-alikes grow right next to them, so you need to recognize a parasol with confidence.

Let's look at when and where to pick the parasol mushroom and how to tell it apart from poisonous mushrooms.

When the parasol mushroom grows

Parasols appear from July and last until October, peaking in late summer and early autumn. They love warmth and moisture after rain, and they grow fast — in a day or two the cap opens from a tight “drumstick” into a wide umbrella.

Where to look for parasols

The parasol mushroom loves open, sunny spots:

• forest edges, clearings, forest roads;
• meadows, pastures, old orchards;
• open broadleaf and mixed woods.

Parasols often grow in groups and even in “fairy rings” on grassy patches. We also write about other mushrooms of forest edges and meadows.

How to recognize a parasol mushroom

• Cap large (10–25 cm), grayish-brown, covered in loose scales, with a bump in the center; egg-shaped in young mushrooms.
• Stem tall, slender, with a snakeskin pattern and a movable ring that you can slide up and down.
• Flesh white, doesn't change color (in the shaggy parasol it reddens slightly when broken).
• Size — parasols are noticeably bigger than toadstools.

A movable ring on the stem and a big scaly cap are reliable signs.

Careful: look-alikes

The main danger is mistaking a young parasol for an amanita or small species for poisonous Chlorophyllum species. Precautions:

• Don't pick small “parasols” under 8–10 cm — that's exactly where the poisonous ones are.
• Avoid mushrooms with a bulb and a sac (volva) at the base of the stem (a sign of an amanita).
• Flesh that turns sharply yellow or brown when broken is a reason to pass.

Pick only large parasols with a movable ring that you're sure of.

Sources

• “Identification Guide to the Fungi of Ukraine” (Kyiv, Naukova Dumka publishing house).
• Macrolepiota procera in GBIF, the global biodiversity database.
• Macrolepiota procera in MycoBank, the international fungal nomenclature database.
• Macrolepiota procera on Wikipedia.