The cap is ringed (lat. Rozites caperatus), popularly referred to as a chicken or cockerel, undeservedly ignored even by the most experienced mushroom pickers. This unsightly fungus from the cobweb family, causes associations with grebes, and does not seem appetizing. But if cooked correctly, it tastes exactly like a bird. That's why these mushrooms are called males or hens.
What else is called?
This is a little-known mushroom. Many did not even hear about him, and when they collide, they pass by, not suspecting what taste pleasure they are depriving themselves of.
The official name of the chickens is a ringed cap. It belongs to the genus Rozites (Rozites caperatus). Despite the low rating among mushroom pickers, it has many popular names. In addition to the “chicken” names, his name is:
- white bog;
- cap;
- greenfinch;
- gray sandbox;
- under the green.
It happens that his name is "gray row", but he does not belong to their family. It differs from the real gray rowing in color and structural features of the legs.
Rooster Features
The hens, indeed, are somewhat reminiscent of grebes. They are also unstable, weak. So that instead of delicious cockerels not to collect grebes, you need to know the exact description of the mushroom:
- A hat. This is the most noticeable part of the cockerels, so you should study it in detail. The cap is ringed, young, the hat is round, shaped like an egg. The edges are slightly curled down. The color is slightly brownish - similar to the shades of chicken eggs. The diameter of the cap in young fungi is 5 cm, in old ones - 10-12 cm.
As it grows, the egg-shaped cap unfolds, turning into a cap. The edges are aligned, and the torn film forms a ring around the leg. Spore-forming plates are at first light yellow. As the cocks grow, the plates darken. In old mushrooms, they are rusty or light brown in color. The top of the cap is mottled with cracks and covered with a slight whitish bloom. - Leg. The chicken is the most common. It reaches 12 cm in length. Thickness is up to 3 cm. The shape is cylindrical. Below - a small thickening. There is a film membrane. The lower part is smooth, above - a slight plaque. Color is light yellow.
- Pulp. Its taste is similar to champignons. It has a fibrous structure. Dense, but somewhat watery. The color is white. Often affected by worms.
Experienced mushroom pickers tell on the video about the features of the ringed cap - how it looks, where it grows, what is interesting:
Where and when does it grow?
Chickens prefer to grow in mountain and foothill forests. Growth time is from August to October. Favourite places:
- near blueberries;
- next to a low birch;
- under beeches;
- in deciduous forests.
Mushrooms choose their "favorites" in the plant world. Living close to them, fungi form mycorrhiza - this is a fungus root, which is a product of the symbiosis of fungal mycelium and the roots of higher plants.
The habitat is Europe, North America, Japan. The cockerels, as we see, "scattered" around the world. They can be found even in Greenland and Lapland. The fungus can grow high in the mountains - up to 2,500 m above sea level. Chickens adore acidic and podzolic soils - here they live in whole colonies. This mushroom is widespread in the forests of Belarus, in Russia it can be found in marshy areas.
The mushroom is ready for collection from the beginning of July until the frost. Knowing the hood's love for acidic soils, it must be sought in the swamps and blueberries. Males grow in colonies, so they are attractive prey - you can quickly pick up a full basket.
Who can be confused with?
Chickens can be confused with inedible mushrooms:
- Fly agaric. The cocks on the hat and the ocher color of the spores are distinguished from them by cockerels. Amanita - white scales and spores.
- The cobweb is lilac, as well as other representatives of this family, in which there are many poisonous species. Chickens differ from them with a ringed skirt - similar mushrooms have only fragments of it.
Mushroom value
Cockerels are a welcome product in cooking. They are edible, and you can cook them as your heart desires. The calorie content of the mushroom is 22 kcal per 100 g. Nutritional value of 100 g of annular cap:
- protein - 3.09 g;
- carbohydrates - 3.26 g;
- fats - 0.34 g.
Also, the annular cap contains:
- water - 92.45 g;
- fiber - 1 g;
- sugar - 1.98 g.
Mushrooms are rich in vitamins C and D, thiamine, riboflavin, minerals - calcium, magnesium, selenium, zinc, phosphorus, iron, potassium, sodium and other useful elements.
Chickens are a valuable product, they taste like mushrooms. In Russia, this mushroom is underestimated, but in Europe it is considered delicious and even grown artificially.
This mushroom is not in vain called such tender food names - hens and males. The annular cap is not only edible, but also universal - it can be prepared in any way. Chickens are ranked in the 4th food category, which indicates their low nutritional value.
All restrictions on the use of males are associated with a characteristic feature of mushrooms - they accumulate heavy metals present in the environment in their bodies. Therefore, they cannot be collected near roads and in ecologically unfavorable zones.
Growing cockerels
These mushrooms are tasty, easy to collect and cook. It is not surprising that such a delicious representative of the mushroom kingdom is grown artificially.
Growing on stumps
For cultivation, most often, stumps remaining after cutting trees are used. Growing order:
- First you need to get the spores. Hats of ripened males are laid on a sheet of paper - so that the spores spill out. Pour the resulting seed into a small container of water.
- Water with spores is poured on stumps.
- From time to time stumps are watered.
Chickens grow best on pine, spruce, birch and aspen stumps or on logs of these species.
They “infect” the substrate with fragments of rotten stumps with the mycelium of the roosters grown on them. Take "seed" in the area where the hens grow in colonies. Ways of infection with stump fragments with mycelium:
- Cavities are made in infected stumps - grafting wood is laid there.
- Material with mycelium can also be fixed on the end of the stumps with nails. And in order to maintain moisture, the vaccine mycelium is covered with spruce paws or pieces of moss.
Chickens can be grown in this way during the entire growing season. Unless in the heat and drought, you should not rely on the harvest. The mushroom grows best in spring and summer. Amateur mushroom growers say that caps grow on infected material for 5-8 years.
Growing on chocks and wood waste
Caps can also be grown:
- On wooden chocks. Take round scraps of wood with a length of 30-40 cm and a diameter of 15 cm. Harvesting of scraps is carried out in spring or autumn. And only freshly cut trees are suitable. Lumps infect like stumps. But they must first be kept in a dark room. The exposure time is 2-3 months. Favorable temperature of 15-20 ° C. Next, the chocks are vertically laid in pits 20 cm deep. The bookmark interval is 50 cm. Infected places, like on stumps, are covered with spruce paws. Here, the males will bear fruit twice a year for 2-3 years.
- On wood waste. The method is good for growing indoors. You can use shavings, wood chips, sawdust - they are laid in glass jars or pots. Take sawdust and shavings. Mix and pour boiling water. Add starch (7.5 g per 1 kg of the mixture), bean flour (15 g), oatmeal and corn flour (25 g each). The mixture is laid out on sterilized jars. Sterilization time - 1 hour.
For breeding, you can use wooden boxes or plastic bags. Nutritional supplements can be different. Along with flour and starch, you can use:
- beer wort;
- malt;
- potato pulp.
Cockerels are a delicacy that deserves the attention of mushroom gourmets. Behind an unpresentable view lies a mushroom of surprising deliciousness, which in the food ranking can easily stand next to mushrooms and porcini mushrooms.