Giant golovach (Calvatia gigantea) ata ma faʻamatalaga

Giant golovach (Calvatia gigantea)

• Raincoat giant
• Langermania giant

Giant golovach is a species of fungus from the genus Golovach of the Champignon family.

Langermania (golovach) giant (Calvatia gigantea) – the body of the fruit of the fungus has the shape of a ball or egg, flattened, the size in diameter sometimes reaches 50 cm, at the base there is a thick root-shaped mycelial strand. The exoperidium is paper-like, very thin, and quickly cracks into irregular pieces and disappears. The shell is thick and brittle, breaks into pieces of irregular shape and falls off, revealing the cotton-like inner pulp (gleba).

The flesh (gleba) is initially white, then yellow-green, becoming olive-brown when fully ripe. The color of the fruiting body is initially white on the outside, then gradually turns brown with ripening.

Spores are the most valuable medicine. Show high antitumor activity. The drug calvacin was made from the fungus, the properties of which were tested on animals with cancer and sarcoma. This drug is active against 13 of the 24 types of tumors studied. It is also used in folk medicine for the treatment of smallpox, laryngitis, urticaria, and has an anesthetic property similar to chloroform.

Distribution – the fungus can be found almost everywhere, but most often in the temperate zone. It occurs alone, but having appeared in one place, it may disappear completely or not appear for a very long time. This species is called “meteor”. On the territory of Our Country, it was found in the European part, in Karelia, in the Far East, in Siberia in the Krasnoyarsk Territory. Also in the North Caucasus. Grows in mixed and deciduous forests, meadows, fields, pastures, steppes one by one.

Edibility – the mushroom is edible at a young age, while the flesh is elastic, dense and white in color.

Video about mushroom Golovach giant: