Mushrooms and Toadstools

Here in the tropics, after a heavy rain, the next morning you will see mushrooms sprouting up anywhere, and sometimes everywhere.

When we were young, my siblings and I would go picking mushrooms – not realizing that some of them are poisonous, and if we had inhaled the pores we would have fallen sick. Luckily, we were not poisoned, and I lived to tell the tale.

I was told that these mushrooms are also known as toadstools because they looked just like a perfect spot for a toad to sit. Maybe because of this, toadstools are thought to be poisonous. Actually, not all toadstools are toxic. Some toadstools are not poisonous at all. The same goes for mushrooms. While most mushrooms are edible, some mushrooms can be deadly.

So, how do you differentiate between a mushroom and a toadstool? This is the answer I found on one site – quite humorous answer too. “If it looks like a good spot for a toad to sit, then go ahead and call it a toadstool. No one will mind.”

So, I guess both names are interchangable, or both meant the same thing.

Here are some pictures of mushrooms I took on my walk. Have a look and see which you would call a mushroom, and which you would call a toadstool.