Mushroom Mythology

Since man first began to reason he has attempted to find explanations for the many strange events that occur in the world around him. Some of these explanations may seem to us, in the light of contemporary knowledge, to be almost as strange as the events they attempt to explai. It seems hard to believe that only a century or two ago scientific thought and myth were so closely entwined as to give rise to the many different, and to us amusing, stories that make up that strangest of fungal growths - the fairy ring. Often on a grass lawn or pastureland you can see a curious formation where darker circles of grass stand out from the rest, often with a circle of bare ground just inside the rich outer ring. Several rings can occur on a single lawn and often overlap each other, their size varying from 25-50 cm (1-2 ft.) across to some more than 50 cm (55 yds.) in diameter. At the edge of these rings if the season is favourable you often find a number of toadstools.

Several different species of fungi form fairy rings but the commonest by far is that plague of golf courses, the Fairy Ring Champignon, Marasmius oreades. This tough, rather small, plain ochre-brown toadstool is found throughout the world wherever there are grasslands and causes more damage to lawns than almost any other toadstool.

In earlier centuries this uncanny formation was the cause of much wonder. What caused the ring of taller, darker grass? What was the meaning of the bare, worn circle just inside, with perhaps another richer circle within it? The bare ring looked suspiciously like the path of pattering feet and the rich grass could only be the result of spellmaking! One has only to look at some of the names given to these rings to see the explanation that appealed most to our forebears - fairy rings, fairy dances and fairy courts, hag tracks or the sorcerer's ring. At a time when elves and witches were 'real' entities, it was only natural to assume that they had performed their wild dances and revels in a circle under the light of the moon. Because of this belief in their magical origins, many superstitions have always been attached to fairy rings. Depending upon where you live, it can either be very good or very bad luck to enter a ring, and the dew off the grass circle makes a good love potion for young girls. To have a ring in the field next to your house can bring good fortune, but to let your animals eat the grass is asking for trouble!

The presence of the toadstools seems either to have been ignored or used as further evidence of magical or devilish influences, fungi being generally regarded with awe and suspicion. As the centuries progressed and more scientific and rational ideas took the place of superstition, such explanations simply wouldn't suffice, and so new, more sensible explanations were put forward by the naturalists of the day. The most popular and persistent of these was that the rings were the result of lightning. When the lightning hit the ground, the electrical energy was believed to radiate outwards, scorching the soil and thus leaving a bare circle. Other interpretations made use of all sorts of miscellaneous animals from snails to goats, the only point they had in common being that they had all been observed at some time going round in circles!

The real cause of the rings is of course the fungi but the circles are still fascinating structures, even if their creation is not quite as exciting as was once thought. The circular pattem originates when a fungaI spore germinates and the mycelium begins to spread outward from this centraI point. If there are no obstructions, it wiII radiate outwards evenly to form a circle. Where the mycelium is thickest, the hyphaI threads of which it is composed fill the minute air spaces in the soiI and prevent free drainage of water. The roots of the grass suffer from waterlogging and lack of oxygen and so the grass begins to die, forming the bare ring. At the outer edge of the spreading mycelium, the soiI is still clear and it has the added boost of various nutrient chemicals released by the fungus. The grass at this outer edge finds it has more food and so grows taller and richer than the rest. We now have the outer dark ring and the inner bare ring, but what about the other rich circle of grass that often appears within this? The answer is that the mycelium is only actively growing at the edge and the originaI centraI growth gradually dies away. This in tum reopens the air spaces in the soil, and the decaying fungaI mycelium provides food for the grass that has survived or reseeded within the ring. With more food and oxygen, the grass is once more able to thrive and so a centraI circle of richer grass is formed.

It is strange that this idea should have taken so long to be accepted, particularly when it is known that one William Withering had stated as long ago as 1792 that fungi were responsible for the rings. The other, more fancifuI, stories still held sway however and it was not until the mid-nineteenth century that the true facts were generally known and accepted by the majority of people. The true explanation does contain one amazing fact, however, which is worth remembering whenever we tend to mistakenly think of fungi as short-lived, ephemeraI plants. The age of some of the largest rings, those 50 m (55 yds.) or more in diameter, has been estimated at nearly six or seven hundred years with a growth rate of up to 35 cm (14 in.) a year!

Marasmius oreandes (Fairy Ring Fungus)

Although nearly all fungi can, and often do, grow in circles, this species is the most frequent caue of fairy rings. A fairly small toadstool, 5-10 cm (2-4 in), it has a light brown cap with a central knob and often a slightly ridged or milled edge; the flesh is firm and elastic. This species is capable of drying out in hot weather, reabsorbing moisture when it rains and then starting to produce spores all over again. It is a delicious edible species which dries well and can be cooked in a variety of ways. It frequently forms very large rings, many metres across, and consequently presents problems to green-keeping on golf courses and cricket pitches.

Fungi have always had a rather mixed reception; although for many of us they are as familiar and usefuI as our everyday vegetables, to a great many people they represent a very unknown world. In the past they have been condemned in parts of Europe as vile, unholy plants begotten of the devil, while in other cultures the edible species are the most treasured of all plants, the 'food of the gods'. Certainly the Romans treated them with great respect and hired trained mushroom collectors to go out and collect the safe and edible species for preparation in exotic dishes. The most highly prized were toadstools called boleti, not the same species as the boleti we know today but in fact some of the gilled species. A particular favourite was Amanita caesarea. This beautifuI fungus is still highly rated in the kitchen today but the Romans went to the extent of having speciaI dishes called boletaria to prepare them in and only cutlery made of such materiaIs as amber was believed suitable for eating such a delicacy. Considering that the Emperor Claudius Caesar is reputed to have died from a dish of poisoned mushrooms, it is perhaps understandable that the Romans took such pains over their preparation.

Various primitive cultures have worshipped species of fungi. The early Siberian peoples for centures gathered the Fly Agaric ToadstooI as a sacred plant. The Fly Agaric is one of a number of toadstooIs which contain hallucinogens and the strange visions and dreams they caused were credited as a gift from the gods. In Mexico a similar cult surviving today uses a fungus called 'TeonanactI', which is variously interpreted as 'food of the gods' or 'dangerous mushroom'.

The most well-known toadstool in the world, the Fly Agaric has featuredJn countless children's books with the appropriate gnome or fairy sitting on top. It has also been the subject of both mystical and religious worship in parts of Russia and northern Asia. Thè strange hallucinogenic drugs obtained from the cap have for centuries been used to induce visions, while the poisons also contained in the ftuit-body were once used to stupefy and\ kin flies. An absolutely unmistakable fungus, it remains one of the most magnificent species in the world. Curiously, in North America the Fly Agaric varies in colour from bright canary yellow to pink or white, and only on the west coast can the typical red form be observed.

A fungus which was definitely regarded with suspicion was the Stinkhorn, Phallus impudicus, and its relatives (see page 60). This suggestively shaped and repuIsively odorous fungus was a naturaI candidate when it came to connecting fungi with witchcraft. The peculiar 'eggs' from which the mature fruit-body grows were regarded with particular suspicion as the eggs of demons and evil spirits. Even so, the eggs are eaten by some people and even today they are used as a cure for various ailments or as love potions.

Phallus impudicus (Common Stinkhorn)

Very common in late summer and throughout the autumn, this fungus first signals its presence by its foul odour, which often carries a great distance; this is one of the few fungi you hunt by smell! Nearly always connected to dead wood, it often fruits in rings around tree stumps and presents a rather weird sight, usually with large numbers of flies feeding on the slime-covered cap. It is interesting (if rather anti-social) to collect an 'egg' of this fungus and hatch it under a glass jar. The whole process only takes a few hours, usually during the night or early morning.

...The speed with which a toadstooI grows above ground is essentially an expansion of the tissues rather than true growth. Nevertheless, it is still commonly believed that all mushrooms and toadstools grow overnight and are gone by midday. There are many stories connecting this rapid growth rate with the full moon and also with thunder. The thunder theory is widespread in Japan where certain fungi are actually called 'thunder mushrooms'. This idea is, of course, not completely ill-founded for thunder is usually accompanied by rainstorms and fungi often do spring up after rain. There has even been serious research into whether the moon does indeed affect mushroom growth and some results, although uncertain at present, suggest that it might. The moon does after all exert a gravitational pull and fungi are known to be influenced by gravity, so perhaps the connection lies there.

This very hard. black fungus is found particularly on beeches and when cut open reveals many layers of concentric rings in the flesh. The rather sombre, burnt appearance, and the black powdery spores, closely resembling charcoal, led to the association with the legend of King Alfred's unfortunate cakes. Although the reputation of this fungus for curing cramp is widespread in Europe, it is difficult to see just how it originated, as there is no proof of its efficacy.

Wherever one travels in the world there are fungi and stories connected with them, whether it is the natives of New Guinea who credit special properties to the strange stinkhorn, Phallus indusiata, with its long lace-Iike collarette, or people in various parts of Europe who even to this day believe that King Alfred's Cakes, Daldinia concentrica, are a cure for cramp. In Africa one Swahili-speaking tribe has a sort of ritual 'quiz' in which one of the standard questions is 'Who is the little man of the forest with the big hat?' The answer is, of course, a toadstool.

Auricularia auricula (Judas Ear, Jew's Ear)

A remarkable fungus which looks uncannily like a strange, velvety brown ear, this is almost always found on elder trees. The common name is associated with the legend that Judas Iscariot hanged himself on an elder tree-the fungus is supposed to represent his uneasy spirit retumed to earth. I t is one of the jelly fungi (the tremellales) and becomes bone hard when dry .It is considered a delicacy and in the Far East a closely related species is widely cultivated as a vegetable.

Tremella mesenterica (Witches' Butter)

From the common name one might expect a rather nasty, unpleasant, slimy fungus, but in fact this is a very loverly and delicate species which belongs to the group called the Tremellales, or jelly fungi. The large, irregular fruit-bodies, rather like wrinkled lobes, have a soft jelly-like texture and are the most intense yellow-orange. When dry, the fungus hardens, turns dark orange and looks completely different. It is found on deciduous wood from late autumn through to early winter. A close relative, also called Witches' Butter, more more deserving of the title, is Exidia glandulosa. It has soft brown or black fruit-bodies and is also found on wood.

Dictyophora indusiata (Stinkhorns)

The Phallales, or stinkhorns, have always been associated with folklore, superstitions and suspected witchcraft. Their foul odour, rapid growth and enmergence from an 'egg' have all lent substance to their unfortunate reputation. In centuries past, people were actually accused of summoning demons and witches to drop these eggs into a neighbour's garden in order to cause him illness from the noxious fumes! This tropical stinkhorn species, with its fantastic lacy veil, is still today held in awe by certain tribes who believe it to have magical properties.

In myths fungi are often closely connected with the gods. They appear as a 'gift' in the tale of the Koryak peoples, who say that the god Existence spat upon the ground and the Fly Agaric appeared to give strength to the warrior Big Raven in time of need. As with many folk stories, there is a rather similar tale current in parts of Europe which says that St. Peter spat bread on the ground while he was following Christ and this too turned into mushrooms. The Devil, who was close behind, also spat on the ground and made the brightly coloured but poisonous toadstools!

Source:

•  "Mushroom mythology",Geoffrey Kirby, Mushrooms and Toadstools, Chartwell Books Inc./Mandarin Publishers Ltd. (Hong Kong, 1977),  p. 60 (photograph) and 68-73.