Multiple organ failure on a stick
It’s the season of multiple organ failure on a stick, otherwise known as the Death Cap, Amanita phalloides. Death Caps contain the …
Cry “God for Harry, England and St George’s Mushrooms.”
Tomorrow is St George’s day, which is an important day in my calendar. That’s not because I’m particularly nationalistic, swept away with …
Fly Agarics and the Board of Agriculture
Here’s one of my recent purchases, Edible and Poisonous Fungi. What’s this? Bulletin No.23? The Ministry of Agriculture & Fisheries? Published by …
Cork Oak
It’s one of the most important plants ever known to humans. It’s the Cork Oak, Quercus suber. It’s a beautiful medium-sized tree …
Blushing
One of the most common fungi in UK woodlands is The Blusher. I’ve just found this photograph I took of one back …
2020 highlights of a wilder Orkney life
In 2020 I managed two trips to Orkney. I did it by self-isolating for two weeks before travelling and then taking all …
Fly Agarics
There are Fly Agarics in abundance on Bovey Heath at the moment. It’s tricky to find one which hasn’t been partially eaten …
A rare fungus up the hill where mushrooms are taller than trees
I’m walking the remote western coast of Westray today. There’s enough phone signal for an emergency call and precious little else here. …
Fly Agarics at Bovey Heathfield
Amanita muscaria; the Fly Agaric. Magical, aren’t they?
False Death Caps and Ugly Milkcaps
There are many False Death Caps, Amanita citrinum, in the woods at the moment. Their strange white bodies litter the ground, eerie …
Fly Agarics then and now
What’s the use of illustrations in the age of photography? Surely they are old hat?
If you go down to the woods today
One night in the Cairngorms means there’s a chance to see Red Squirrels, Pine Martens, Red Deer and yet it’s the fungi …
The quiet hunt
There’s something in the air today in Devon. It’s the merest hint of a dampness and a chill in the air whispering …
The Blusher – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
When I was a child a group of retired gentlemen naturalists took me under their wing. I went on weekly countryside walks …