Button Mushroom "Steamer" — a delicious, edible mushroom, used similarly to the field mushroom, not inferior in taste: fresh (boiled for about 10 minutes) in first and second courses, pickled, marinated. Grows: on fertile soils in mixed forests, as well as in gardens and vegetable patches, in September–November. Cap diameter 5–10 cm, brownish, covered with sparse scales, with remnants of veil at the edges.
Gills: thin, free, crowded, pink in young mushrooms, brown in mature ones. Stem: 7–10 cm long, whitish, initially fibrous, then smooth, deeply embedded in soil, thickened at the base. Ring — thin, wide, hanging, single, located close to the cap. Flesh: thick, firm, fleshy, white, slightly reddens when cut, has chicory aroma.
On open areas, button mushrooms grow in shady spots, in partial shade under trees, shrubs, in raspberry patches, on strawberry beds, on shaded sides behind buildings and fences, where they are not harmed by direct sunlight. Soil on S=2.5–3 m2 must be loosened. During this process, weeds and roots of grasses should not be removed unless they harm other crops.
Sow mycelium on loosened soil surface. Then evenly spread 5–7 cm layer of compost over it. The mushroom colony will start fruiting after 2–2.5 months. During this time, no visible changes will be noticeable on the soil surface. Fruiting lasts from early spring to late autumn. Throughout this period, mushrooms can be planted. Yield of cultivated button mushroom is very high — up to 12 kg of mushrooms per square meter per month.
