Book Description
With more than 700 mushrooms detailed with color photographs and descriptive text, this is the most comprehensive photographic field guide to the mushrooms of North America. The 762 full-color identification photographs show the mushrooms as they appear in natural habitats. Organized visually, the book groups all mushrooms by color and shape to make identification simple and accurate in the field, while the text account for each species includes a detailed physical description, information on edibility, season, habitat, range, look-alikes, alternative names, and facts on edible and poisonous species, uses, and folklore. A supplementary section on cooking and eating wild mushrooms, and illustrations identifying the parts of a mushroom, round out this essential guide.
Customer Reviews:
Great guide for a risky hobby........2007-10-15
If you know anything about mushroom hunting, or even if you don't. This book is a must have. If you know anything about mushrooms or mushroom hunting you know that it is a dangerous adventure. Some are poisonous, some are just plain NASTY! Some will alter the mind, some are delicious. If you are into mushrooms or mushroom hunting this is a must have to identify mushrooms. I trust this book with my life. I have many times.This guide displays the mushrooms vividly and has great in depth details about the mushrooms in it. It will tell you a variety of information that will keep you safe, and remember, "If in doubt...throw it out." If you cannot without a doubt identify something, do NOT eat it. It is a helpful guide and an excellent buy for anyone. Very nice compact guide for field identification.
best mushroom guide.......2007-09-10
This guide has the clearest most detailed pictures of any field guide I've seen. The info on how to use the guide is simple and understandable. I've identified and documented many mushrooms using this guide.
A Wonderful Guide.......2007-07-09
This is book is an excellent guide to mushrooms for the money. Its portability and durability are also second-to-none.
The book is full of beautiful color photographs and full descriptions. The pictures are grouped into categories (like all Audubon field guides) for quick identification. Personally, I am very pleased with it and highly recommend it.
Pretty Darn good.......2007-03-13
This book is pretty good, a little dificult for me to use, the photos and written data are in two different sections, but is it pretty comprehensive, and not very hard to use with a little practice.
The best portable field guide out there........2006-12-30
Some reviewers here are not real mushroom collectors. As portable field guides go, this is one of the best ones. Other bigger books may do it better but for preliminary identification and portability this is the one you want. One reviewer says there are no colloquial names. There are for virtually every one where one exists. Another said there were no latin names. There are latin names for every one. Any time you use one photograph to represent a species, there will be questions since most species are quite variable. Other field guides are guilty too. Peterson's guide uses drawings rather than photographs. That said, the photographs are good. The descriptions are a bit economical but this book is almost 1000 pages. Everyone serious about mushroom collecting and identification needs more than one book. Period. This one is for the field. If you need a more comprehensive book or books you may need to buy a 4 wheeler to carry them around. This book has served me well since 1981.
Book Description
More than 1,000 species of mushrooms described in detail. Over 700 paintings and drawings reveal subtle field marks that cannot be captured into photographs.
Customer Reviews:
A Field Guide to Mushrooms: North America.......2007-01-03
Good up to date material. Good illustrations
2nd best mushroom book.......2006-02-23
The pictures in this guide are not quite as nice as in the audubon version but is still easy to use and a nice handy size for carrying in a pocket
Still a standard field guide to fungi.......2005-11-21
This field guide is nearly twenty years old, but there are so few field guides to fungi that it still remains a standard reference. Like all Peterson field guides, it is handy and compact and can easily be taken into the field and pored over with the mushrooms in their wild habitat. The text is detailed and accurate and a "similar species" section is very useful. However, this guide uses painted plates whereas amateurs generally find it easier to identify fungi by photographs. I personally find photographs more accurate, but enjoy paintings in their own right. In this case the paintings are pleasing and quite faithful.
Although this guide should be on every mushroom enthusiast's shelves, a better beginners guide might be Roger Phillips' photographic book which has now appeared in a revised edition (on Amazon.com: ISBN 1554071151). Phillips provides 1000 photographs compared to this guide's 700 illustrations. However, Phillips is rather large to take into the field except in a backpack. Bear in mind that no fungus guide is comprehensive - each treats a selection of species - so it is wise to have a good selection in order to be in with a chance of correct identification.
So, until a compact photographic guide to fungi appears, this tried and tested Peterson guide will continue to fill a niche in the mushroom hunter's library.
mushroom field guide.......2000-07-04
I found this book to be well illustrated. And although not as comprehensive as i'd hoped, it is still the most complete guide I have found. Overall, I feel it is well above average--and I'm quite hard to please!
Customer Reviews:
Not Practical for the Common Hiker.......2007-01-07
This book has three fatal flaws that should prevent it from being in the library of any person without formal training in botany and/or mycology:
Flaw #1: Exclusive use of scientific names (Latin). Common names get only a passing mention and are often not included in the index.
Flaw #2: Identification key is based upon spore printing. The ID key for this book requires spore printing for most mushrooms as a first step. This requires removing the fruiting body, e.g. picking the mushroom just to ID it. Except for purposes of consumption it is illegal to harvest mushrooms in most U.S. National Parks. This book should be illegal too. I hate following in the footsteps of people who harvest mushrooms for purpose of identification. There is nothing more annoying than to discover the sole specimen on an entire hiking trail has already been taken/picked/cut/spore-printed by some inconsiderate hiker. Books like this one which encourage such behavior have no place in our society.
Flaw #3: The book doesn't include the "lower order" of fungi such as Slime Molds and Encrusting Fungi. In my part of the world the Slime Molds and Encrusting Fungi are among the most prolific and interesting of all fungi. The book is worthless to me for identification of those.
Don't buy this book if you feel as do I that harvesting mushrooms for the simple purpose of identification is not an Eco-friendly behavior.
Practical field guide and interesting read.......2006-08-26
Reviewed by Juanita Watson for Reader Views (8/06)
"North American Mushrooms: A Field Guide to Edible and Inedible Fungi" is a comprehensive field guide that features most of the fungi one may encounter in the United States and Canada. This field guide is part of "A Falcon Guide" series and is a necessary asset to the library of any wild mushroom, or edible plant disciple.
"North American Mushrooms" is authored by the husband/wife team of mushroom enthusiasts. The Miller's have a long and extensive history in the world of fungi - they have worked all over North America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and parts of Asia, and recently have carried out their field work in Biodiversity studies in the Greater Antilles and Belize. Orson is a Professor Emeritus of Botany and curator of Fungi from Virginia Tech, and is one of the leading mycologists in the United States. His wife, Hope, has authored a wild mushroom cookbook, taught classes, and supports Orson's work in the field. Basically, these people live and breathe mushrooms.
This comprehensive book has beautiful pictures, easy to understand keys, detailed drawings, interesting fungi information, listings of toxins, and useful information on habitat. This is not only a practical field guide but an interesting read into the world of wild mushrooms. In the wide range of selections available in the genre of field guides, I would recommend "North American Mushrooms" along with a couple area specific resources to round out a definitive package.
Understand what you are buying.......2006-08-23
This is a good book in the right hands. If you are looking for the definative book on mushrooms, it hasn't been published. The closest equivalent to definative is the David Arora Mushrooms Demystified. This book by Miller is a FIELD GUIDE (and maybe 1/5 the size and weight of Demystified), it is very, very short on the number of species covered ('only' hundreds out of thousands). Do not use this book to decide if you have harvested an edible mushroom. There are a great many edible mushrooms that look like a great many inedible and poisonious mushrooms and YOU CANNOT DO IDENTIFICATION BY COMPARING PICTURES.
Understand I am not in any way dissing this book; Miller knew his stuff, and this is an excellent guide. I bought a copy when it was first available, and it has already seen several days in the field. I learned about it from a well respected expert who had also purchased a copy. But I also already had a well used copy of Arora, and I have been foraging for many years, and I have gotten instruction from people like Larry Evens, Gary Lincoff and David Arora, and I STILL MAKE MISTAKES. The critical feature of a field guide is the Key that walks you through the identification process. This book (Miller) has a somewhat simplier key, that I can run through quickly (and larger type which is nice for old eyes in the middle of the forest). I would never eat off the identification from this book or any other. I have already found semi-common specimens where I know the species, that Miller doesn't cover. It's a nice addition to a library that also includes something specific for your region, plus Arora's Demystified. I would take the time to put a plastic cover on it, and it is a good bit heavier than the Audubon guide. However, if it comes to it, I will be carrying this guide in my backpack rather than any of the others I own (and I own a bunch of mushroom books).
Over six hundred color photos and line drawings offer important identification keys .......2006-07-18
If only one field guide to North American mushrooms is to be obtained for a reference holding, make it NORTH AMERICAN MUSHROOMS: A FIELD GUIDE TO EDIBLE AND INEDIBLE FUNGI. Over six hundred color photos and line drawings offer important identification keys and a comprehensive survey of where and how to gather wild mushrooms. Pictorial keys throughout enhance suggestions for location and identification as well as culinary use, and come from one of the most respected mycologists in this country, also a professor of Botany and Curator of Fungi. He's written six books on fungi and has authored 105 new species new to science in his papers: his is a masterpiece including sturdy binding for solid field use.
Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch
New Mushroom Guide.......2006-07-03
I like the format of this book with the description under the very nice pictures and the use of the scientific names rather then the common names like the Audubon Guide. It won't take the place of Mushrooms Demystified by David Arora, but it will add to a library of field guides.
Book Description
"Some new mushroomers will find this single volume all the library they need to harvest and enjoy wild mushrooms for the table."
—
Mushroom the Journal
"The publication is of excellent quality and print, well edited, authoritative, and provides an excellent introduction to edible and poisonous wild mushrooms."
—
Mycologia
Unusual shapes and colors make many mushrooms alluring to the eye, while the exotic flavors and textures of edible mushrooms are a gourmet delicacy for the palate. Yet many people never venture beyond the supermarket offerings, fearing that all other mushrooms are poisonous.
With amateur mushroom hunters especially in mind, David Fischer and Alan Bessette have prepared
Edible Wild Mushrooms of North America. This field guide presents more than 100 species of the most delicious mushrooms, along with detailed information on how to find, gather, store, and prepare them for the table. More than 70 savory recipes, ranging from soups and salads to casseroles, canapes, quiches, and even a dessert, are included.
Throughout, the authors constantly emphasize the need for correct identification of species for safe eating. Each species is described in detailed, nontechnical language, accompanied by a list of key identifying characteristics that reliably rule out all but the target species. Superb color photographs also aid in identification. Poisonous "lookalikes" are described and illustrated, and the authors also assess the risks of allergic or idiosyncratic reactions to edible species and the possibilities of chemical or bacterial contamination.
Customer Reviews:
MMMMMMMMMMMMMGood.......2006-07-25
Lovely photographs, excellent identity descriptions, tons of useful information and I love the recipes -- plan to make every one of them.
Excellent Book For Novice Edible Mushroom Hunter.......2005-03-25
This is a concise easy to use book for people just starting to
hunt for edible mushrooms. It concentrates extensively on the edibles, and look alike poisonous. By eliminating 1000s of other mushrooms it is great for identifying the finest edibles. It makes a great companion to a more all encompassing publication. The recipes I've tried were good also.
Limited scope, horrible recipes........2004-01-07
I bought this book many years ago as the first of what is now a fairly large collection on the subject. As the title indicates, it concentrates on the EDIBLE fungi, so the reviewer who was dissappointed because he/she could ID only one of the 13 mushrooms he/she found has unfair expectations out of the scope of this work. That said, only the most popular edibles seem to be listed here, and variants on those species are not covered in much depth. It's ok for those who just want to be able to distinguish a golden chanterelle from a jack-o-lantern, or a morel from a thimble-cap so they can safely gather some edibles. The worst thing about this book, however, is it's unfortunate recipes. Every single recipe I've tried from it completely sucks. Either the cooking method is inappropriate to that particular mushroom (turning delicate specimins to mush, for instance, or inundating absorptive ones with oil), or strong flavors from other ingredients overwhelm the sometimes subtle flavors of the mushrooms themselves. I get much better results by trusting my cooking intuition and experimenting than I do by following these recipes.
more confused than before.......2003-08-19
I came to US from Europe several years ago. It was a family tradition to go pick wild mushrooms every fall during my childhood years. So when I moved to Virginia countryside I decided I will try and revive the mushroom picking tradition in my new country. I started with a book to help me identify all those different, unfamiliar species of mushrooms. So I bought the "Edible Wild Mushroom Guide". I went to the woods and picked a bunch of different mushrooms - each one was different and tried to use the Guide to identify them . Out of about 14 visibly different species of mushrooms that I picked - the guide gave positive ID on ONE (!) mushroom only. Other 13 were not even included in the book. I can't testify to the quality of recepie part of the book - I was somewhat reluctant to cook things I can not identify!
Great for Beginners.......2002-11-15
For a "first" book on wild mushrooms I found this one to be very good. The pictures show the top, bottom, stems, colors and different parts of each mushroom. There are "warnings" on those that are ediable, but make some people sick, and the NO-NO"s are equally shown and written about. We're just new at this, and for a "starter" book this was just the ticket.
Book Description
The Mushroom Hunter's Field Guide is the guide that tells when, where, and how to find delicious edible mushrooms and how to avoid poisonous ones. Beginners as well as experts will be able to identify mushrooms in a matter of minutes. All of the mushrooms included are illustrated in beautiful color, adding visual enjoyment to the textual materials. The descriptions are tinged with wit and wisdom, making the use of this guide an enjoyable and rewarding experience.
This edition of The Mushroom Hunter's Field Guide should be useful throughout the United States and Canada, but users should remember that each region has certain species peculiar to it, and it is impossible to include all of them here. The coverage is best for the Northeast, Great Lakes region, Rocky Mountains, and the Pacific Northwest. It includes most of the truly fine edible wild mushrooms, whether they are common or rare. It also includes the most dangerous ones in order that collectors may recognize them for what they are.
"Whether you are picking mushrooms to eat, or simply want to identify the many strange and beautiful mushrooms you find on walks through the woods, this field guide is highly recommended."-- American Horticulturalist
"This is the mushroom forager's Bible. Don't go into the wilderness without it."--Creative Living
". . . should be on the bookshelf of all serious amateurs, and the professionals will also find it helpful."--Mycologia
The late Alexander H. Smith was Professor Emeritus of Botany, University of Michigan. Nancy Smith Weber is Associate Professor of Forest Science, Oregon State University.
Customer Reviews:
Great for the Experienced Mushroom Hunter?.......2006-08-02
This is a big, fairly technical book which is NOT appropriate for a novice 'shroom seeker. It would be great for someone who already knows what he is seeing, but for those of us who need pictures for identification it is too textbook-like.
A GOOD SUPPLEMENT.......2005-11-25
I was glad I added this one to my collection and library. As others have pointed out, it certainly is not an all inclusive work by any means, but I did find the photography well done and the book to be helpful IF I use it in conjunction with other works. I cannot stress the "IF" enough. I photograph wild flowers as a hobby but cannot pass up a good shot of any mushrooms I come across in my wonderings. This is a good field guide to carry in the car and it usually gives me enough information to get a good start on identification after the photography work is done and I have time to properly research the photographed subject. I suspect the very, very serious collector or professional would need much more than is offered here, but for my purposes, it works just fine.
Best Mushroom Book for the Lake States.......2005-09-06
This is the best mushroom book for beginning mushroom hunters in the Lake States, written by a career University of Michigan mycologist who collected and described many new species in the Lake States for 40 years or more.
D.L. Richter, Ph.D.
Mycology/Pathology
Limitted Information.......2001-02-21
This is a nice book to augment a collection, but is not complete. The set of guides written by Smith and his daughter (Weber) do not overlap. This means that you need this book and the edition for the south in order to look up mushrooms in the south. There are no mentions of spore print colors in the individual entries, which makes for a lot of thumbing back and forth between the specific entries and the genus descriptions
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.......1999-09-01
This book contains excellent color photos to mach the color tones and size characteristics of the mushrooms in the Midwest. We typically search in the areas south of Lake Superior.
Book Description
More than 450 trees, shrubs, and nonflowering plants depicted in meticulous, specially drawn full-color illustrations. At-a-glance identification capsules pinpoint the characteristic textures, shapes and colors, and other distinguishing features. Also included are over 145 mushrooms.
Customer Reviews:
Pocket Guide.......2007-08-09
Good for quick identification of various woodland trees, plants and mushrooms. Descriptions are short and undetailed and maps are innacurate.
Ok for use as a pocket guide on a hike but can be a little frustrating as it is fairly general and many trees & plants are not shown.
Book Description
A guide to finding and identifying mushrooms in the Southern United States.
Customer Reviews:
Mushrooms galore.......2007-10-18
Came in condition as promised, in timely manner. Great pictures - justs what I needed.
A very practical reference on mycophagy and mycology.......1999-09-27
covers all the basics.. in detail.. includes basic taxonomic keys and useful materials.
Book Description
A guide to finding and identifying mushrooms found west of the Great Plains.
Customer Reviews:
A true Field Guide.......2006-08-12
A short introduction that shows and explains dyeing technique with lots of superb photographs. The meat of this book is the detailed field guide to mushrooms with a full set of color photographs. Proper keys are here, good index, glossary and bibliography. Superb publication with all the details needed to do the job.
Great field guide to mushrooms for dyeing.......2003-07-08
This book does not give much information on how to dye with mushrooms, however, it is the absolute best field guide to mushrooms used for dyeing to date. Each mushroom is described in detail, with an accompanying color photograph and the colors that it yields. This book is a must have for mushroom dyers.
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Mushrooms Demystified: A Comprehensive Guide to the Fleshy Fungi
A Field Guide to Mushrooms: North America (Peterson Field Guides(R))
National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Insects and Spiders (Audubon Society Field Guide)
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