Growth of a mushroom

[Fungus Ken]

Nick asked me if I could say something about the growth rate of mushrooms so here goes.

People often say you have to get up early to find mushrooms, the implication being that they spring up over night and then disappear just as quickly. There are some species which do just that, for example some of the smaller species of inkcaps, but many species take much longer than this to develop into a mature mushroom.

The mushroom develops from a small primordium or button, which can be well concealed, and this can take many days to develop. The final expansion into a fully grown mushroom - the stage you are more likely to notice - can be relatively quick because much of the cell division and differentiation takes place at the button stage. The later growth phase is largely the result of inflation of the individual cells with water. The shape of the mushroom is determined by how much swelling takes place in different parts of the structure.

I assume that availability of water at the crucial stage of expansion can influence how quickly this happens, although it will also vary from species to species, so there are no hard and fast rules but it will still take a few days in some species and the mature mushroom can remain around for a few days in the species with sturdier "fruiting" bodies. (I put fruiting in inverted commas because strictly speaking they are not fruiting bodies. They are sporocarps because they produce spores.)

But the reason you need to get up early to see mushrooms, in particular edible ones, is because someone else is also likely to regard the tasty ones in your favourite patch as their own personal crop and may well get there first.

Ken

[NickCantle]

Smashing Ken! Welcome back and thanks very much!!! I'll check on those Tubaeformis tomorrow

Nick

[goosey]

Thats a great explanation Ken - thanks .

Now for stupid question (I expect ) Is Mushroom(s) just the English word for fungi, or is it actually different?

[Fungus Ken]

Anatomically mushrooms and toadstools are the same thing. They are the reproductive structures of certain fungi comprising a means of raising the spore bearing surface (gills or tubes) high enough to allow the spores to disperse in a moving current of air. The stem provides the height above the substrate, the cap provides a protective cover over the gills or tubes and the gills or tubes provide a large surface area for the production of spores.

The fungus is the whole organism which includes the mycelium and any reproductive structures.

Ken