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Lactarius indigo [ Basidiomycetes > Russulales > Russulaceae > Lactarius . . . ] by Michael Kuo There is no mistaking this mushroom. It is a truly beautiful, indigo blue species. Although most field guides list it as "widely distributed" and "common," I searched for 12 years before finally finding it! Oddly, since then I have no trouble finding it in a variety of places every year. I'm beginning to wonder how I could have missed a bright blue mushroom all those years. Speaking of "bright blue," Lactarius indigo remains blue when you cook it. George Carlin (who famously declared there are no blue foods) might finally have met his culinary match. According to mycologist Tom Volk, Lactarius indigo, when cooked in omelets, results in the "green eggs" of Dr. Seuss fame. MushroomExpert.Com contributor Bob Zordani and I tried Lactarius indigo (though not in eggs); while Bob enjoyed it, I found it to be insipid. Apparently many people agree with Bob: field guides often recommend it, and it is a popular edible in Mexico, where it is sold in open-air markets. Description: Ecology: Mycorrhizal with hardwoods (probably only oaks) or conifers; summer and fall; fairly widely distributed in North America from the northeast to the southwestern United States and Mexico--but apparently rare or absent in the Pacific Northwest, on the West Coast, and in the northern Rocky Mountains. Cap: 5-15 cm; convex becoming flat or vase-shaped; margin inrolled, becoming arched; with zones of color, or evenly colored; sticky or slimy; deep indigo blue when fresh, grayish or silvery when faded; frequently bruising and discoloring deep green. Gills: Close; colored like the cap or paler; nearly yellowish at maturity; staining green. Stem: 2-8 cm long; 1-2.5 cm thick; equal or tapering to base; sometimes eccentric; slimy at first but soon dry; hard; hollowing; often with potholes on the surface. Flesh: Whitish but immediately indigo blue when cut; staining greenish. Milk: Deep indigo blue; dark green on exposure. Odor and Taste: Odor not distinctivel taste mild to (sometimes) slowly slightly acrid. Spore Print: Cream.Chemical Reactions: KOH on cap surface negative. Microscopic Features: Spores 7-9 x 5.5-7.5 µ; broadly elliptical to nearly round; ornamentation with prominences 0.4-0.5 µ high. Hesler and Smith (1979; links below) list two varieties: variety indigo (described above) and variety diminutivis. Var. diminutivis is similar to var. indigo, but has a cap 3-5 cm, stem 1.5-2.5 cm x 6-7.5 cm, flesh that is white but immediately indigo blue on exposure, then green in a few minutes, and a pure white spore print. It is recorded only from Brazoria County, Texas. REFERENCES: (Schweinitz, 1822) Fries, 1838. (Saccardo, 1887; Coker, 1918; Kauffman, 1918; Hesler & Smith, 1979; Smith, Smith & Weber, 1979; Weber & Smith, 1985; Arora, 1986; States, 1990; Phillips, 1991/2005; Lincoff, 1992; Metzler & Metzler, 1992; Horn, Kay & Abel, 1993; Barron, 1999; Roody, 2003; McNeil, 2006; Miller & Miller, 2006; Nuytinck et al., 2006; Kuo, 2007.) Herb. Kuo 07120001, 07220701. Further Online Information: Lactarius indigo var. indigo in Hesler & Smith, 1979 |
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Cite this page as: Kuo, M. (2007, September). Lactarius indigo. Retrieved from the MushroomExpert.Com Web site: http://www./mushroomexpert.comlactarius_indigo.html |