On Mon, 7 Jul 2003 12:51:29 +0100, "Justin Clark"
wrote:

My one year old sees them as another 'toy' to feed upon... but if the
mushrooms aren't poisonous then I guess she can eat to her heart's
content...!

I'd scotch that habit pretty quick if I were you!

Granted, the sort of fungi you're likely to see in lawns at this time
of year ( and given the weather ) are generally harmless ( couple of
inches tall, inch diameter cap, light creamy colour, very crumbly? ),
but there are one or two nasties that thrive in the same situation.
Fungi rot quickly too, so whilst a fresh example might do you no harm,
one that's on the way out might cause considerable discomfort for some
time after ingestion.

My own 'lawn' throws up a number of different fungi, including ( smug
) field mushrooms ( though the slugs/rabbits/deer etc. usually beat me
to 'em ) and various other harmless varieties - but it also throws up
a wax caps, which are not nice at all if eaten.

As a father of three children, may I recommend to you the 'shock and
awe' method of teaching children the dangers of picking and eating
unidentified things?
The shock part comes as a very loud and definitely shouted 'NO'.
It tends to make kids burst into tears, but it's a loss less painful
than watching them suffer poisoning... or worse.

The awe part comes a little later - when they're old enough to
understand such things, and you can then explain to them the wonders,
dangers and delights of fungi, berries and wild fruits - and why you
had to be so cruel and heartless a few years ago.

Regards,



--
Stephen Howard - Woodwind repairs & period restorations
www.shwoodwind.co.uk
Emails to: showard{whoisat}shwoodwind{dot}co{dot}uk