Plutey is a mushroom of the Plutaeva family that grows mainly on wood debris. Despite the widespread distribution of spit, this mushroom is rarely harvested and used little. In addition, scientists recently confirmed the presence of a noticeable dose of the hallucinogenic enzyme psilocin in some species of spit. For this reason, great care should be taken when using this mushroom for culinary purposes.
On this page, you are presented with a photo and description of the spit of deer, willow, white, noble, umber and scaly. You can find out where and when these mushrooms grow, as well as get information about their counterparts.
Willow mushroom
Category: edible.
Willow spit hat (Pluteus salicinus) (diameter 3-9 cm): grayish-ash, blue or pinkish. In young mushrooms, it has the shape of a bell, which over time changes into fine wrinkles, practically spread out with a network. The edges of the cap are usually darker than the center.
Leg (height 3-13 cm): white or bluish along the entire length. Tapers from bottom to top, has the shape of a cylinder, fibrous at the base.
Flesh: light gray or white in color, which usually turns slightly green when cut or broken and when exposed to air. In its raw state, it has a slightly sour taste and a strong aniseed odor.
Blades: white, cream or pinkish and very frequent.
Doubles: the deer clown (Pluteus cervinus), which has a lighter cap. With complete confidence it is possible to distinguish from willow only in laboratory conditions.
When it grows: from mid-June to early October in many countries of Eurasia, North America and North Africa. In Russia, it is most common in the forests of St. Petersburg.
Where to find it: On roots, tree stumps and rotten wood residues. Prefers willows, oaks, poplars and alders in humid forests.
Eating: dried.
Application in traditional medicine: not applicable.
White mushroom and its double
Category: edible.
White spit hat (Pluteus leoninus) (diameter 4-10 cm): usually lemon, yellow, changes shape from bell-shaped to almost flat. In the center, which is much darker than the translucent edges, there is a tubercle.
Leg (height 3-9 cm): yellowish, but not as bright as the cap. Cylindrical, tapering from bottom to top, smooth and very dense. Flesh: white in the stem, yellow in the area of the cap. Does not change color at the site of cut or break, does not have a pronounced smell and taste.
Plates: loose, white or slightly yellowish, older mushrooms may have a pinkish tint.
The counterpart of the white spit is the related orange-wrinkled plute (Pluteus aurantiorugosus). It differs from white in a lighter cap and in that it grows on sick, but still living trees.
When it grows: from mid-July to early October in Europe, Siberia, Primorye, China and Japan, as well as in the North African states – Algeria and Morocco.
Where to find it: In deciduous forests on decayed oak and poplar wood.
Eating: dried and fried.
Application in traditional medicine: not applicable.
Other names: heap of piles.
What is the difference between the umber rook and the deer
Category: conditionally edible.
Cap of the umber spit (Pluteus umbrosus) (diameter 4-12 cm): usually white or brownish, with wrinkles, in its center there is a small tubercle. The semicircular shape changes over time to an almost extended one.
Stem (height 4-11 cm): gray-white or brownish, with small scales along its entire length. It has a cylindrical shape and tapers from bottom to top. Solid and very dense.
Plates: very loose, white in young mushrooms.
Flesh: whitish in color, which does not change at the cut or when exposed to air. It tastes bitter and smells like fresh radish.
Doubles: deer crimson (Pluteus cervinus) and dark-edge (Pluteus atromarginatus). Deer plyutey differs from umber in the color of the plates, and dark-edge grows exclusively in coniferous forests.
When it grows: from mid-July to early October in Europe, Asia and North America. In Russia, it is most often found in the Samara, Rostov, Perm and Moscow regions.
Where to find it: On rotten stumps and wood debris – mostly beeches, ash trees and poplars.
Eating: only on condition of preliminary soaking and boiling as a component of various dishes, since in finished form the mushroom itself has no taste.
Application in traditional medicine: not applicable.
Other names: shady plyutey, umbellate plyutey, edged-plate plyutey.
Noble mushroom
Category: inedible.
The hat of the noble spit (Pluteus petasatus) (diameter 5-16 cm): white, grayish, rarely yellow. Has small scales. In young spitters, it is slightly convex, eventually becomes completely flat or slightly depressed with a small central tubercle. Usually dry or slightly slippery to the touch. The edges are straight, wrapped inward, sometimes they can be torn.
Leg (height 6-14 cm): white, sometimes with a slight brown coating, dense, cylindrical in shape.
Flesh: white, which does not change at the cut and when exposed to air. It has a pleasant mushroom aroma and sweetish taste.
Siblings: the deer plute (Pluteus cervinus), which is larger in size and pale in color.
When it grows: from mid-July to early October in the countries of the Eurasian continent. In Russia – in Tatarstan, Primorsky Krai, Krasnodar; Samara, Irkutsk, Leningrad, Rostov and Moscow regions.
Where to find it: In all types of forests, usually near oak and beech trees.
Eating: not consumed.
Application in traditional medicine: not applicable.
Other names: domestic plyutey.
Reindeer ropes: photo and description
Category: inedible.
Reindeer spit (Pluteus cervinus) hat (diameter 4-25 cm): gray, brown or almost black. The edges are usually much lighter than the center, but if the weather is dry and sultry for a long time, it also fades a lot. In young mushrooms, the cap has the shape of a bell, which over time changes to almost completely outstretched with a small tubercle in the center. Silky to the touch, sometimes it can crack.
Stem (height 4-17 cm): usually white or gray, solid, cylindrical, with longitudinal fibers, often with a slight reticular or moire pattern. May be severely curved and swollen. Easily detaches from the cap.
Flesh: very brittle, white in color, which does not change at the cut or when exposed to air.
Plates: wide and thick. Young reindeer spitters are white, over time the color changes to pinkish.
Deer plyutey got its name from the color of the hat. Has a pungent and tart radish odor.
Twins: related spine of Pozoir (Pluteus pouzarianus) and dark-edge (Pluteus atromarginatus), as well as wide-lamellar colibia (Megacollybia platyphylla). But Pozuar's creeper does not have a distinct odor and grows on soft deciduous trees, the dark-edge crimson is darker and most often found in coniferous forests, and the colibia is distinguished by a creamy shade of plates.
When it grows: from early June to late August in almost all European countries.
Where can you find it: on rotted wood of all types of forests, as well as on sawdust. Prefers pine and birch.
Eating: not consumed.
Application in traditional medicine: not applicable.
Other names: brown plyutey, dark fibrous plyutey.
Scaly mushroom
Category: inedible.
Scaly spit cap Pluteus ephebeus) (diameter 3-10 cm): grayish or brown, with small scales, very fleshy, often covered with radial cracks. In a young fungus, it is convex, later becomes prostrate or with upward curved edges, with a small tubercle in the center.
Leg (height 3-11 cm): shiny white or light gray, very dense, cylindrical.
Flesh: white in color, which does not change when cut and when exposed to air.
Plates: very wide and loose. Young spits are gray, but over time they turn pink.
Scaly plyuchty tastes astringent, does not have a pronounced
Twins: scaly plyute (Pluteus lepiotoides). But this mushroom is much smaller in size, has more pronounced scales on the cap, does not taste knit.
When it grows: from early August to mid-October in Russia – in the Far East, as well as in the Samara and Rostov regions.
Where to find it: On rotten trees and wood debris, often found in urban areas.
Eating: not consumed.
Application in traditional medicine: not applicable.
Other names: youthful plyutey, lepiotoid plyutey.
