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Thursday 31 October 2019

Hemimycena

Hemimycena 

I took a stroll around my local cemetery the other day.  Beautiful sunny day and just the right damp conditions. I've mentioned before that cemeteries have really good habitat for mushrooms to flourish because they have lots of different trees and are well established.

That day I saw some perfect white mushrooms growing in pine needle litter.  Great for photographing as they were in their prime.


Showing group in pine needles



Showing fine fibres at the base of stem





Showing gills
Characteristics:

Cap up to 1.5 cm across, firstly conical then bell-shaped and can flatten.  The margin becomes wavy with maturity.  Chalk white, with a more pale/cream centre.   The gills are white and quite crowded.  Stem is white and has white fibres at the base.  No odour. Grows in large groups amongst pine needles and other debris.  Summer to Autumn.

There are several that can grow either in conifer or pine needles. Lactea, cucullata, pithya and pseudogracilis. With the absence of analysis with this I cannot determine which precisely it is.














Thursday 24 October 2019

Hygrocybe psittacina - Parrot Waxcap

Hygrocybe psittacina - Parrot Waxcap

A simple stroll turned into something a little more special last week.  I was admiring some fungus growing in some moss on a quiet suburban street and was approached by a lovely couple who invited me to take a look in their garden at the abundance of mushrooms.
I discovered a Parrot Waxcap aptly named after the green/yellow/red colours of parrots.
It really is quite a lovely fungus and this was my first sighting.

Characteristics:

Cap up to 3 cm across, firstly convex or bell-shaped and then more flat with a broad umbo.  Also firstly, it has a greenish hue, slowly turning more yellow with a pinkish stain on or near the centre of the umbo.  The texture of the cap is waxy/greasy/gluten-like.
The gills are broad, with a yellowish staining at the edge. The stem is yellow, greenish/blue and it smells mealy.  It grows in grass on lawns or heaths - Summer to late Autumn.  Waxcaps thrive in natural habitat and are prone to being affected by fertilizers.  Therefore they are not as common as previously.

Showing cap

Showing yellow tinged gills




Thursday 10 October 2019

Galerina marginata - Funeral Cap/Funeral Bell

Galerina marginata - Funeral Cap/Funeral Bell

As the common name indicates this mushroom is very poisonous.  It contains the same toxins as the Amanita phalloides Death Cap mushroom.  Also, it can easily be mistaken for Kuehneromyces mutabilis.

It is not rare but not so common either.  To be found on stumps and logs of broad-leaf trees.  I discovered a little group on the Clifton side of the River Trent, Nottinghamshire.  The striking feature for me is the striate and significant ring for such a delicate looking mushroom.

Characteristics: cap yellowish/tan up to 6.5 cm across.  Gelatinous, slight umbo, smooth textured. Drying more yellowish.  Gills concolorous with the cap, crowded.  Stem also concolorous with the cap but darker tan below the ring.  The stem being slender and equal and fibrous.  The ring is superior, prominent, brown, striate/fibrous.
The odour is faint, mealy.  

Showing underside and the distinctive ring

Showing the cap


It looks an innocent little mushroom, but clearly looks can be deceptive.
Thank you to Howard Williams for helping me to identify this mushroom.