A date with Waxcaps
A trip to Somerset to see my friend Martin had the unintended bonus of a walk and a crop of wonderful waxcap fungi, despite the occasional drizzle
Waxcaps are fungi with, wait for it… waxy caps. At least some of them are. They come in an array of glorious colours, with many red, yellow and green. Take a look at some of my previous posts about them:
More Waxcaps
Cycling past Waxcaps I'm cycling on Dartmoor when I see a Blackening Waxcap, Hygrocybe conica. It's always a thrill so spot one, so… read more
One of Britain’s rarest fungi So you think it doesn't look like much? I think it looks fabulous. It's growing in the short grass around… read more
The most beautiful bouquet of Killerton Waxcaps Killerton is one of my favourite National Trust places in Devon. It's one of the ones which was sold to… read more
Blackening Waxcaps There's a Blackening Waxcap, Hygrocybe conica, on the moist, shady roadside verges of the industrial estate. It's a beautiful colour.… read more
Waxcaps on the wane We're on a trip to north Devon, near Lynmouth, on an organised fungus foray. I'm particularly excited about the grassland… read more
Waxcaps Waxcap fungi thrive on damp, 'unimproved' grassland, or rather grassland which hasn't be ruined by artificial fertiliser or herbicides. A… read more
Crimson Waxcaps Waxcaps live in unimproved grassland. That means they are often only found in graveyards as the rest of the grassland… read more
Waxcaps in the meadows There are Waxcaps in the meadows in Devon: Meadow Waxcaps. I'm looking through some old photographs of fungi and see… read moreOne of my favourite wax caps isn’t brightly coloured, though, it’s a gorgeous mid-brown colour on the cap and a rich, warm orange on the gills. There are meant to be only 100 sites in the UK where it still grows, but I suspect that with increased awareness, those numbers will increase.
It’s the Date Waxcap, Hygrocybe spadicea.
My hope is that an increased understanding of how strange, wonderful, delightful and mysterious fungi are will help more people become fascinated with what they find, aim to identify them, and contribute to the science and conservation.
All the waxcaps here would be killed by shredding if this field was ploughed, and killed by chemical burning if it was artificially fertilised. It’s the entire environment which needs protecting, not individual species. Let’s hope this one remains, happily fruiting in profusion, for many years to come.