Mushroom of the Year 2016 Lilastieliger Rötelritterling

Mushroom of the year 2016: Lilastieliger Rötelritterling is threatened
The German Society of Mycology has selected the Lilastielige Rötelritterling as Mushroom of the Year 2016. The graceful meadow mushroom has already lost many habitats through grassland intensification. The conservationists call to report current occurrences in order to protect them specifically.

Violet Ritterling: Mushroom of the Year 2016. Image: petrabarz - fotolia

The Lilastielige Rötelritterling (Lepista personata) is also called Maskenritterling and is easy to recognize. He has a 5 to 25 cm wide, gray to ocher hat. The slats are a little lighter colored. The typical violet-blue stalk can only be seen when looking under the thick-fleshed hat. The fruiting bodies are formed almost all year round, but especially in October and November. The mushroom is edible and has a mild aroma.

The Lilastielige Rötelritterling is widespread throughout Europe. A distribution focus is in Germany, so that the preservation of the species in this country is of great importance. Walkers can discover it on unfertilized meadows and pastures, in orchards, on grasslands and in parks, especially on limestone soils. There he often grows in large rings, sometimes in groups. In many locations it is classified as "endangered" to "highly endangered" or is already extinct.

To maintain the species contributes as natural as possible care of grassland. Intensive fertilization, the transition from grassland to farmland or the conversion of nutrient-poor land to building land takes this meadow fungus valuable habitat. (Heike Kreutz, aid)