Shaggy Inkcap ( Coprinus comatus )

Unusually we are getting a number of short lets, usually this is between Christmas and Easter not in the Autumn Term.  So today we were prepping the Lodge again.  As we went up the steps Clickychick pointed to this Inkcap growing just under the the edge of the Verandah.

Shaggy Inkcaps are a fairly common, however they are short lived.  Once they have grown out from the mycelium they very soon start to autodigest reducing the cap to a black slime that slowly moves up the cap until it is all gone.  Shaggy inkcaps are edible but for obvious reasons need to be harvested and eaten soon after they appear.  The usual warning applies however "before eating any fungi make sure you know what sort it is".

Personally I am not keen on the modern trend towards "foraging".  Most things that are foraged are the fruit/fruiting bodies of the plant.  This reduces the chances of the plant reproducing.  Alternatively if leaves are foraged the plant is not going to grow as well as if they hadn't been removed.  Then there is the chance of multiple foragers visiting the same plant.