Belyanki - mushrooms, which are scientifically called "white waves". They are representatives of milkers. Despite this name, the whites are mushrooms, the color of which can be pinkish or even orange. In the people they are also called "fluffy breasts" because of the specific pile on the hat.
Description
Belyanka is a mushroom that has a convex silky-fluffy dry (rarely mucous) hat with a depression in the center. Its diameter is 4-9 cm. The fluffy edges are wrapped. As the fungus grows, the hat unfolds and sometimes becomes funnel-shaped. Its color may be white, white-cream, slightly pink. The middle is pinkish-fawn. Plates of the fungus are frequent, slightly downward, grown, narrow. Their color is white or pinkish. Cream spore powder. The mushroom’s leg is cylindrical, 1.5–2 cm in diameter, and grows 2–4 cm in height. It is finely fluffy (sometimes naked), hollow inside, light fawn in color with a pink tint or white. Belyanki are mushrooms whose milky juice is very caustic. In contact with skin, it causes irritation. In air, color does not change. The whites are very similar to pink thunder. Finding differences between them can be quite difficult, but the former has a lighter hat and smaller disputes. Biologists often understand, just by holding a microscope, that in front of them are not pink waves, but white mushrooms. Photos of them can be seen in this article. This mushroom smells like geraniums.
Habitat and distribution
Belyanki are mushrooms that create mycorrhiza with birch trees. Therefore, they are found in birch and forests mixed with this tree. Prefer wet places. This mushroom can be found on the forest edges, in young birch forests, on the sidelines of paths and roads. Most often they grow in groups. They are found throughout the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere (North America, Eurasia). In the Russian Federation, the European part of the country is especially rich in them. Collect whites from July to October.
Culinary properties
Belyanki are mushrooms considered conditionally edible. They are assigned the second category, which indicates good quality. In order to completely get rid of caustic juice, which contains unsafe compounds, it is recommended to pre-soak the white waves in two days. Then they need to be boiled for 15 minutes. The mushroom is consumed fried, stewed, salted and pickled.
Medical use
In the Scandinavian countries, whites are used to treat various diseases. In domestic folk medicine, boiled and fresh white traps are used to treat various skin diseases, indigestion, and constipation. The juice of fresh mushrooms is rubbed into the skin affected by the fungus. It also helps with sweating feet. A decoction of this fungus with celandine, a series of leaves of young birch, chamomile is used to treat pediatric diathesis and scrofula. For rheumatism, gout and polyarthritis with the same composition, do foot baths. It should be noted that the healing properties of whites are not yet fully understood. As a medicinal raw material, mushrooms can be stored dried in tightly sealed jars.