Plums and Custard

Tricholomopsis rutilans

Dead coniferous and deciduous wood. Summer, autumn.

Fruiting bodies large, fleshy. Cap 8-15 (25) cm across, brownish-red, brownish-yellow, violet-red, scaly. Gills yellow, adnate. Stem 5—15 (20)x 1—5 cm, yellow, covered with purplish-red scales, woody. Flesh firm, not bitter, yellow, thick. Characteristic features: fleshy, tough fruiting bodies, most often growing on pine and spruce, but often also on birch and oak stumps, especially near the ground (on roots). Appears singly or in small groups. Edible, more valuable than Prunes and Custard (Tricholomopsis decora), but so far not used as food, because it is tough and woody. Very common.