Inverewe Garden in Wester Ross, run by the National Trust for Scotland (NTS) is promising visitors a fabulous fungi display this autumn
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A world-famous Wester Ross garden is turning heads this autumn with a fabulous fungi display.
Inverewe Garden, cared for by the National Trust for Scotland (NTS), is experiencing a bumper crop of mushrooms and toadstools all around the 2000-acre heritage estate.
The fungi boom boasts variety as well as quantity – over 70 species have been identified and that number is predicted to rise throughout the autumn.
Visitors can see the prolific fungi most obviously under the trees surrounding the car park, but also throughout the Garden and alongside the trail through the woodlands.
The display, which is expected to continue well into November, is creating quite a spectacle at the property on the shores of Loch Ewe, ranging in colour from bright yellow, red and brown, to purple, white and pinky-orange.
Local resident Professor John Hedger has been helping the trust identify and record the remarkable volume and range of fungi which the garden has fostered this year.
Among the species which can be spotted are the tall-stemmed Fly Agaric with its classic "toadstool" red cap covered in white spots, Blusher, Slippery Jack, Brown Birch Bolete, Milkcaps and the inedible False Chanterelle.
Very prominent are the purple and red-capped Brittle Gills such as the Sickener (Russula emetica). Eating it causes vomiting, hence the name.
Also common along the Woodland Trail under the pines are the pinky-orange caps of the Terracotta Hedgehog, often growing in delightful "fairy rings".
The fungi also vary widely in size. Extraordinarily large examples of the famously edible Cep or Penny Bun Mushroom can be found growing near to the Cuddy Rocks at the Loch Ewe-side Garden, some weighing over a kilo.
Professor Hedger explained that research has shown that there is a partnership between fungi and roots in woodland, whereby important plant nutrients are passed to the tree and in return the fungus receives a flow of sugars.
He said: "In recent years it has been realised that the relationship is much more complex than we thought and has given rise to the concept of the 'Wood Wide Web' in which the fungi in the soil provide a connection between trees, for example with mother trees supporting seedlings via inter-connecting fungi.
"Some have even proposed a type of consciousness for groups of trees, with the fungi acting like 'neurones' in a collective brain made of plant and fungus which can pass messages about environmental changes between tree species!"
In the past, the Friends of Inverewe group has organised Fungi Forays to study the fungi, but Covid put a halt to those in 2019. Over 70 species were found and it is expected the total will increase when studies can resume in 2022.
Martin Hughes, the trust’s operations manager for Inverewe Garden and Corrieshalloch Gorge said: "Our grateful thanks go to Professor Hedger for his ongoing support and for generously sharing his knowledge.
"It's rewarding to know that the trust's care of Inverewe, through its team of dedicated gardeners, is helping to support such a great range of fungi which play a vital role in the balance of ecosystems."
This article is not intended as a guide for foraging fungi and should not be used as such. You should never pick or eat wild fungi unless you know exactly what you’re doing.
To read more about the fungi, and for further information on Inverewe, go to: https://www.nts.org.uk/stories/fascinating-fungi-at-inverewe
