St George’s mushroom

St George’s mushroom Calocybe gambosa, used to be Tricholoma (or Lyophyllum) georgii, a name given because it often appears as early as St George’s Day, 23 April. It is not unlike the common field mushroom in appearance, but the edge of the cap is wavier and less tidy, and there is no ring on the stem. The cap may measure up to 15 cm (6") across, but is commonly about two-thirds of this size. Both gills and cap are cream in colour. This mushroom grows in rings like the fairy ring mushroom. It is an excellent edible. Dr Badham, the Victorian authority on edible fungi, declared it to be ‘the most savoury fungus with which I am acquainted’. His high opinion is echoed in continental Europe. It is not found later than July; but a close relation, the blewit, appears in the autumn and is almost as good.