little musrooms that pop up all over the place - ID please

Keeno · #1 (**permalink**) 16-05-2011, 12:40 PM

Hi Folks,

I first noticed this mushroom popping up in my lettuce pots outside last year in the summer. since then I've had them come up in an old pot which had poppies in last year, and today I saw one standing loud and proud in my basil plant.

now lookign through the a-z on here I'd say it is a Conocybe pubescens, but all the literature I've found says that that should be growing on Dung, and there definitely haven't been using any of that

many thanks for your help!

Luke

Lancashire Lad · #2 (**permalink**) 16-05-2011, 03:23 PM

Hi Luke, and welcome to WAB.

It does have a resemblance to C.pubescens but there are several possibilities.

A good close up "macro" shot of just the mushroom itself would be helpful, along with one looking up at the gills, and if possible a shot with the mushroom split down the middle to reveal the gill shape/attachment.

Regards,
Mike.

Keeno · #3 (**permalink**) 17-05-2011, 09:09 AM

Hi Mike, thanks for the welcome, this is a really cool place and I'm looking forward to getting more involved!

so I'm afraid my camera is my mobile phone, and hence, a bit xexexexe. but i t took these pics and hope they help

i didn't have the heart (or time today unfortunately) to chop it in half, but hope these new pics are enough

cheers

Luke

Lancashire Lad · #4 (**permalink**) 17-05-2011, 03:21 PM

It still looks like a Conocybe to me. - I dare say it would need microscopy to get it to species level, but the general macro features look about right.

My only reservations being that there is no hint of striation on the cap, whether the gills are possibly a little distant, and the unusual growth location - (but perhaps organic manure may be among the constituent parts of the potting compost?).

I'll probably get shot down by those more experienced, but I can't readily think of a likely alternative.

Regards,
Mike.

Chris Yeates · #5 (**permalink**) 17-05-2011, 05:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lancashire Lad

. . . . I can't readily think of a likely alternative.

Regards,
Mike.

It's a Conocybe and you are quite right - without a microscope and the right book(s) you cannot get further unfortunately

Chris

Keeno · #6 (**permalink**) 18-05-2011, 02:58 PM

fantastic!!

Well thanks for your input folks, it's much appreciated. Now a lot of my friends have said "eat it" (jokingly) so I searched to see if they were edible, but couldn't really find any info. any ideas?

cheers

Luke

Lancashire Lad · #7 (**permalink**) 18-05-2011, 03:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Keeno

fantastic!!

Well thanks for your input folks, it's much appreciated. Now a lot of my friends have said "eat it" (jokingly) so I searched to see if they were edible, but couldn't really find any info. any ideas?

cheers

Luke

Naughty Naughty

Edibility or otherwise is not discussed on WAB, and usually results in the thread being deleted by the Moderators. Please see: -
Is my fungus edible or psychotic requests

Regards,
Mike.

fairplay · #8 (**permalink**) 18-05-2011, 07:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Keeno

fantastic!!

Well thanks for your input folks, it's much appreciated. Now a lot of my friends have said "eat it" (jokingly) so I searched to see if they were edible, but couldn't really find any info. any ideas?

cheers

Luke

Beats me why you even attempted to find out if something so small is 'edible' or not.
Methinks a few heads need to be banged together. The consumption of wild fungi and especially something unidentified (Conocybe is only the genus it falls in, not the species) is not something to be taken lightly.

Neil.

Keeno · #9 (**permalink**) 18-05-2011, 08:42 PM

ah that's fair enough, there's plenty of other websites which deal in naughty funghi, and I certainly wasn't thinking of eating it for those reasons

I only asked Neil, out of curiosity and as it seems like only a very small percentage of uk mushrooms are poisonous, it might just have been one of those "wow! Tastes utterly amazing thrown into a risotto" kinda of situations

but I'll know not to ask in future and stick to the ones in the shops. I totally prefer to just look at them, and didn't mean to snap it off when photographing the gills, but just bent it slightly and over it tumbled...

SheffieldLass · #10 (**permalink**) 18-05-2011, 09:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Keeno

fantastic!!

Well thanks for your input folks, it's much appreciated. Now a lot of my friends have said "eat it" (jokingly) so I searched to see if they were edible, but couldn't really find any info. any ideas?

cheers

Luke

The riposte to your friends should be 'After you'

.
Actually Conocybe filaris also known as 'Fool's Conecap' is seriously poisonous ... it contains toxins similar to that of Amanita virosa, the Destroying Angel.

Melanie