Snow mushroom (Tremella fuciformis)
Systematics:- Department: Basidiomycota (Basidiomycetes)
- Subdivision: Agaricomycotina (Agaricomycetes)
- Class: Tremellomycetes (Tremellomycetes)
- Subclass: Tremellomycetidae (Tremellomycetids)
- Order: Tremellales
- Family: Tremellaceae
- Genus: Tremella (Shiver)
- Species: Tremella fuciformis (Snow mushroom)
- Other names for the mushroom:
- Shiver fucus
- Ice mushroom
- Silver mushroom
- Jellyfish mushroom
Synonyms :
Nakaiomyces nipponicus
Fusiform shiver
- Trembling white
- Tremella fucus
- Ice mushroom
- Snow mushroom
- Silver mushroom
- Silver ear
- Snow ear
- Jellyfish mushroom
Like many shivers, the fucus shiver has a special life cycle that is intertwined with the life cycle of another fungus. In this case, Ascomycete, genus Hypoxylon. It is unclear whether the white shiver is really a parasite on Hypoxilon, or whether there is a complex symbiosis or reciprocity.
Description
Ecology : Possibly parasitizes on the mycelium of Hypoxylon archeri and closely related species - or potentially saprophyte on dead deciduous wood and participates in indefinite symbiosis with hypoxilone (fungi can, for example, decompose those wood components that cannot be assimilated by another fungus). They grow singly or next to hypoxilons on deciduous trees. Fruiting bodies are formed in summer and autumn, mainly in tropical and subtropical regions.
On the territory of Russia, the mushroom is seen only in Primorye.
Fruit body : Gelatinous, but quite hard. Consisting of graceful petals, some sources describe the shape of the mushroom as resembling a chrysanthemum flower. Almost transparent, whitish, up to 7-8 cm in diameter and 4 cm in height. The surface is smooth and shiny.
Spore powder : White.
Microscopic features : Spores 7-14 x 5-8.5 μ, ovoid, smooth. Basidia are tetrasporous, at maturity they become cruciform, 11-15.5 x 8-13.5 microns, with sterigmata up to 50 x 3 microns. Buckles are present ..
Edibility
The mushroom is edible, pre-boiling for 5-7 minutes or steaming for 7-10 minutes is recommended, which gives an increase in volume by about 4 times.
Similar types and differences from them
Orange trembling, edible. In rainy weather, it becomes discolored, and then it can be confused with a trembling white.
Cerebral tremor, inedible. The fruit body is gelatinous, dull, pale pink or yellow-pink in color. Outwardly, this mushroom is similar to the human brain. Brain shivers grow on the branches of coniferous trees, mainly pines, and this important difference will not allow it to be confused with the shivering white, which prefers deciduous trees.
Other information about the mushroom
The Tremella fuciformis (Snow Mushroom) species was first described by British botanist Miles Berkeley in 1856. Japanese biologist Yosio Kobayasi described a similar fungus, Nakaiomyces nipponicus, which had dark growths on the fruiting body. However, they later found out that these growths were ascomites parasitizing on Tremella fuciformis.
There is information that the very first mention of the tremella was in the Chinese treatise of the court physician "On the use of ice mushroom for making the delicate skin of Chinese aristocrats whiteness and matte."
The mushroom has long been grown in China, and for the last 100 years - on an industrial scale. It is used in food, in a variety of dishes, from tapas, salads, soups, to desserts, drinks and ice cream. The fact is that the pulp of the white shiver itself is tasteless, and perfectly accepts the taste of spices or fruits.
In Russia and Ukraine (and, possibly, in Western European countries) it is actively sold as one of the "Korean" salads called "sea mushroom" or "scallops".
Traditional Chinese medicine has been using the mushroom for over 400 years. Japanese medicine uses patented drugs based on the white shiver. Whole volumes have been written about the healing properties of the fucus tremor. The mushroom is sold (in Russia) in jars as a medicine for a huge list of diseases. But since the subject of WikiMushroom is still mushroom, and not paramedical, in this article we will limit ourselves only to indicating that the mushroom is considered medicinal.