Hello everyone. I hunt in pei. I lived here for 2 years and i love it. this is something ive always wanted to get into. now is the time. I have found some non active specimens such as panaeolus, amanita. But I am on a never ending quest to find the liberty caps so highly toughted here in pei. i have lots of free time on my hands, as well as a determination, as well as a few hopeful spots picked out and about to be handed down to me. here is the information i have reviewed and have decided it to be the best material...or the most repeated information from different sources. the most inconsistent information pruduced so far seem to be the colour of the stem, and the colour of the spore print for the active species. I havent yet determined either whether ALL characteristics must be identified in a species before calling it what it rightfully deserves to be called, or just most of them. basically my question is: Do certain features JUST HAVE TO BE THERE 100% of the time, or is there room for variance in certain identifying features of a species?
UNOFFICIAL until verified or edited by mods.
The writer has been researching how to go about hunting mushrooms in pei.
This summary of information will cover these types of species of active mushrooms:
'Psilocybe semilanceata' AKA Liberty Caps
To find these mushrooms, the best places to look seem to be the grassy front lawns such as freshly sodded lawns or those ones rich people own. A personal favourite would be the sheep or cow fields. The best areas to look is in and around sagegrass or near treelines? Would going in and around the cow stalls be taking it too far? Why do these mushrooms grow in grass so randomly placed...this makes it hard to just be able to go out and know exactly where to look. Thats the adventure this activity offers one would imagine. Although "just look in people's front lawns or cow fields" might seem like an easy starting point, it's easier said than done, especially when the reader has no personal experience hunting/identifying mushrooms in the past.
These are some of the questions that must be answered by the end of this year. It's a personal goal to say the least. There are two amazing things happening here, however, already. For one there is really no time restriction or area restriction when it comes to finding the mush. There is also a small network of friends who are willing to help locate actives, as well as go on the hunt. This should be paramount when trying to dissern new, safe areas to scour.
One idea to gain instant, legal, undetectable access to a farm might be to knock on their front door and present a research paper from a university with questions on it like an assignment would have. Included would be questions like, "At what time of day might you find a fox roaming the farm?"
"What areas would you find coniferous trees on farmland? What surrounds them? Record your findings."
"What kinds of grass can you find on farmland?"
"What different kinds of growth can you find on farmland"
"Take a soil sample in a jar to bring back to the lab for microscopic testing"
The climate in PEI needs to be 4-10 degrees celcius during the nighttime to be fruiting bodies rather than just mycelium. The current temps in charlottetown and surrounding areas at night is 10 degrees. We probably just need 1-2 more rainfalls to spark a fruiting explosion. The goal is to hunt at a premium temp this year, as to not strain back and leg muscles by overhunting. the premium temp would be post first frost..or just before. 5-6 degrees C should be optimal for that situation to happen.
The time of year is sept-oct for pei. no reported finding really found so far for pei around this time of year in 2012. At least no one with the balls to post on the shroomery. It is Oct 10 and still no frost reported even. This could mean a possible great active season to come.
How to identify one:
1)gills on hymenium , color ranging from light brown, to darker golden brown almost throughout its lifecycle (please verify these statements)
cap is conical
2)lammalae is adnate or adnexed (refer to fig 1 A)
3)stipe is bare
4)spore print is brown, to purple. NOTE:(If it is black, red, blue or semi transparent and it has every single other characteristic of the active semilanceatas, what does it mean?)
5)ecology is saprotrophic
6)Stem is whitish to light brown, almost golden, staining blue around the base/ whitish areas of the stem at times, almost always. The darker coloured stems seem to keep their colour and prevent from bruising blue.
7) The cap can be up to 2.5in. in diameter
8)The stem can rise up to 10 in tall.
9)The stems are hollow with a fine pith.
10)Stem can be wrapped around the finger like a piece of string
FIG 1A
"Metol" can be legally purchased from any camera and photographic supply outlet. Mix 1 part Metol with 20 parts water. Place the stem of the suspected mushroom in a "metol" solution and wait for approximately 1/2 hour. If the solution turns blue, you have actually collected a mushroom containing psilocybin. $10-15 should be a safe range for 100g of Metol.
As a Begginer, one would definately want to do this:
"Learn about what a viscid pellicle is. Its a thin transparent layer on the cap of a liberty cap( almost all psilocybes really). When you spilt the cap carefully the thin layer , the pellicle, will still be intact. That's the first thing you should check when your new to libs. The Panaeolinas or the Inocybe won't have that feature and is something you can do in the field to seperate them." -"psylosymonreturns"
Is colour of the cap one colour usually, or is it common to differ from shroom to shroom? Seemingly most similanceatas are roughly the same colour at each stage of their life, varying slightly only by the current conditions of the climate. Any kind of golden brown to a darker amber brown seems plausible, but is just 1 peice of many in positively identifying the mushrooms. Also, the cap can be associated with the color of rust at times.
so to sum up identifying a mushroom in as few words as possible:
go from most important traits to least important when identifying
most important include:
1)colour of sporeprint
2)microscopic examination (if your lucky enough to have this ability)
3)Bruising on certain stems, if not at least at or near the base
4)Colour of stem, stipe, and base
5)Shape of cap
6)dimensions of species
7)thickness of stem, "is it meaty or is it hollow?"
8)Is the petticle vicsid?
here are some pics found of the species. some are even from pei.
  
the next ones are from pei supposedly:
Here demontrates the vast color differences from shroom to shroom.
So to close, Always remember to respect the land and the environment to ensure the best possible chance at a fun, safe and enjoyable hunt. Go with a friend if possible, and always bring a flashlight in case of emergency. bring fire as well, such as fire proof matches, or a lighter. Bring something to eat and drink as well...this is mushroom hunting, not fasting. also...bring a couple spliffs or maybe a pipeload just to enjoy while out there. stoners always enjoy a nice, non-heat spot to smoke. what better then in and around nature where no one else is? Remember rubber/latex gloves and replacement pairs as well..it sucks getting poisonous mush all over your hands as well as you want to stay NOT trippin at least for the hunt if you're like me. Use your head. Also make sure to bring your fave easter basket. not only can you avoid being shot by hunters, but you can make up some pretty nice excuses if you ever do get caught, like , "I have a fetish for the easter bunny." no jk lol....just say you lost your dog and look really worried, but not high strung. you dont want to scare the farmer into doing anything stupid. here in canada this works anyways i donno about usa or surrounding areas.
i do like to bring a basket though or some type of strong, but breathable encasement , like a brown paper bag to absorb the excess moisture at picking time. Last, bring a camera if possible and scissors. cut 1' from the base of the stem as to preserve the mycelium for possible future shroomies!
With all this prepared, researched, I feel confident that the libs are just a week or 2 away. my goal is to be able to properly identify a lib by the end of the season. its a blessing that in pei we only have 1 prodominent maker of psilocybe. makes it easier to get to know and find. it also helps that they're so abundant once the time is right.
Dry positively identified (be the trusted identifiers here at shroomery) shrooms by methods stated in other articles. Search "how to dry fresh shrooms" and millions of ideas should pop up. the best ones seemingly dont use heat. a dehumidifier would be ideal for drying.
Summary of sources researched:
1) "PEI Shroom Season" http://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php/Number/16975295
2) "Psilocybe Semilanciata" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psilocybe_semilanceata
3)http://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php/Number/16954756
4)"pellicle (identification)"http://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php/Number/7937196
Summary of pictures sourced:
1)http://mushroomobserver.org/images/320/180890.jpg
2)http://www.shroomery.org/images/semilanceata/4.jpg. Liberty Cap
3)http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/20/Psilocybe_semilanceata_mushroom_in_field.jpg/170px-Psilocybe_semilanceata_mushroom_in_field.jpg
4)http://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php/Number/16954756
Written By ilovemagic
Edited by ilovemagic (10/08/12 04:06 PM)
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