Mushroom Monday - MORNING IN THE CYPRESS ALLEY

The mushroom on the opening picture ...

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... photographed in the gloomy atmosphere of the early morning before the appearance of the sun's disc in the sky, by using the flash to brighten up the scene ... is the Chlorophyllum brunneum ... and ...

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... as you can see on this (relatively) long exposure shot with natural light ... is growing by the old cypress tree ...

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... in the long narrow line of trees between two agricultural fields.

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It's a dark and humid microcosm ...

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... and these meaty & delicious, edible mushrooms appear here regularly, every autumn.

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This species ... that looks like a compact version of the Macrolepiota procera, a well known parasol mushroom, especially when young ... isn't very popular here in the area, not many people pick them ...

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... so I come here like in my secret garden ... when the pomegranates from my ordinary garden, ripe and heavy after the rain, start to fall from the tree ... that's the right time ... most of the time :) ... well, approximately.

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Some smaller pine trees are also growing here, among the tall elegant cypresses ...

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In some places the ground is covered with pine needles ...

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... with fallen branches and cones ... like the one near the small mushroom on this photograph ... and sometimes ...

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... on the cones that are rotting in humidity ... you can find the Mycena Seynii mushrooms ... which are also pretty small.

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This one is growing from an invisible cone ...

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... a pine cone hidden in a pile of rotting wood and foliage ...

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... from the cypress tree.

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While walking through this dark alley ...

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... on that humid day, a few days ago ...

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... among all those mushrooms and rotting plant material ...

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... I stumbled upon this green surprise ... the delicious wild asparagus sprout. Asparagus sprouts are a springtime phenomenon here in the area, finding one in this time of the year isn't impossible but it's a pretty rare find. A bit like a four leaf clover ... or even better, not just lucky, but juicy, aromatic and edible as well.

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This Suillus granulatus bolete is sprouting from the thick carpet made of pine needles ...

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... surrounded by older, decaying exemplars of its own species ...

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... covered with a dense layer of Hypomyces chrysospermus fungus ...

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... and some more Chlorophyllum brunneum mushrooms in a half ring formation.

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Further down the alley ...

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... I saw and picked ...

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... many of these lovely looking, fully formed Chlorophyllum brunneum umbrellas ...

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... and many more young ones ...

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... were sprouting all around the place.

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It's much easier to make a dangerous or even lethal mistake with young mushrooms ...

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... that aren't fully formed ...

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... being patient and leave something for the day after ... many times isn't a bad idea.

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When I got out of the cypress grove ...

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... I saw a group of horses in the distance.

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It was a nice change of scenery.

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I continued along the edge of the cypress alley ...

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... where I saw more mushrooms ... like this edible Agaricus silvaticus ...

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... and this other one ...

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... which I couldn't identify ... so I took the shot and left the mushroom.

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I saw some old, decaying Agaricus pratensis nearby. I had to walk across the meadow to reach my car...

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... and here I found another edible Agaricus pratensis ...

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... this one was in good shape.

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I encountered and photographed also this small unidentified mushroom, here on the meadow ... and that's it ...

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... soon I was driving home (I live only about 5 kilometers from this place) ... and this post has to end ... as always in these mushroom hunts on HIVE, the photographs are my work - THE END.

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