Deej

The tender nesting polypore is a soft, fleshy fungus with a warm cinnamon-orange color that blends right into the dead branches it grows on. It’s easy to walk past without noticing. It isn’t edible, it’s actually toxic, but it has a long history of being used to make natural dyes. It produces some beautiful purples.

The crimped gill mushroom (Plicaturopsis crispa) is a cute, little shelf fungus that grows in dense, overlapping tiers on dead wood across North America. Its fan-shaped caps look a lot like other small bracket fungi, but underneath, there is a surprise waiting. Instead of “normal” gills, pores, or a smooth surface, there is a network

The swamp beacon looks like a tiny egg yolk balancing on a thin white matchstick as it pokes its head out of the water.

Spring mushroom season looks completely different depending on where in North America you live. Here’s exactly what mushrooms grow in spring, by region, where to find them, and when to go looking.

Usually, the first sign of artillery fungus (Sphaerobolus stellatus) is not the fungus itself; it is so small that it commonly goes unnoticed. You have to be looking for it, but more often than not, it will make itself known to you in a very annoying fashion. Artillery fungi do what their name suggests —

Easy Mushroom Breakfasts You’ll Actually Make We’re here to make sure your mornings are made better with mushrooms. Nutritious, umami-packed… The post Make Mushrooms the Star of Your Morning appeared first on Mushroom Council.

In autumn, candlesnuff fungus show up on rotting hardwood stumps — you might see tiny black stalks with white powdery tips growing in dense clusters like a handful of spent matches. These are candlesnuff fungus (Xylaria hypoxylon), and they are very common in North America. These mushrooms aren’t edible; they’re too small and have no

When you cut the cornflower bolete (Gyroporus cyanescens) in half, you see straight away how it earned its common name. The pale, straw-colored flesh turns an intense blue within seconds, and the color is very similar to that of the cornflower plant. The reaction is fast, and the deep, bright blue looks more like a

Dead man’s foot (Pisolithus arrhizus) is an ungainly, odd-looking thing that erupts from the ground with enough force to crack paved surfaces. It’s dark and lumpy and easily mistaken for a pile of animal poop or a rock or a stump — it does not look like a mushroom at all (in the traditional sense).

Finding black gelatinous blobs scattered across dead logs can be a little unsettling. They’re slimy and a bit gross, like someone dropped grape jelly on a branch or tried to coat it in tar. There are two species of black jelly-like fungi, appropriately named black witch’s butter (Exidia glandulosa) and warlock’s butter (Exidia nigricans). These

When you find Black Jelly Drops (Bulgaria inquinans), you may think you’ve discovered someone’s black licorice gumdrop stash in the forest! These fungi are jet-black, rubbery discs that cluster on the bark and wood of fallen oak logs and look, for all the world, like the candy that gives them their common name. Black jelly

The coral pink Phlebia (Phlebia incarnata) is a mushroom that might stop you in its tracks. It has vivid coral-pink caps that stand out against the gray and brown of decaying logs it grows on. It looks like a paint splash! This mushroom isn’t edible,  but it might be a great aid in cleaning up

When you think of mushrooms, what comes to mind? A favorite pizza topping? The secret to a rich, umami-packed sauce?… The post Mushrooms, the MIND Diet and Brain Health appeared first on Mushroom Council.

Take one look at this mushroom, and you can figure out super quickly how it earned its common name. The sunny side up mushroom (Bolbitius titubans) looks so much like an egg yolk perched on a slender stem, it’s a little disconcerting. This small, delicate mushroom with its bright yellow cap grows in lawns, parks,

Are you ready for this weirdo for-sure-an-alien fungus? Purple jellydisc (Ascocoryne sarcoides) is absolutely bizarre and a little creepy with its purple blobs of jelly oozing from rotting wood. While this seems strange enough, the purple jellydisc is actually even more eccentric because it literally shape-shifts throughout its life and, when mature, can be quite

Blended Mushroom Course You can complete the e-learning course at your own pace and time before attending the live training. This course introduces the basic concepts and processes involved in composting and mushroom growing, followed by questions to consolidate your learning. Immediate feedback is provided once you submit your answers. During the live training, all

The difference between a fungus and a mushroom is simple and worth knowing. Especially since these words get used interchangeably all the time.

The dog’s nose fungus (Camarops petersii) is for sure one of the most bizarre-looking fungi species found in the woods. This fungus has an uncanny resemblance to an actual dog’s nose: the surface is black, wet, shiny, and covered with tiny pimples, just like the snouts of the real thing. Maybe this is Mother Earth’s

The oyster rollrim mushroom (Tapinella panuoides) is a common species across North America. It looks quite a bit like the edible oyster mushroom (Pleurotus) and often gets confused with it. This mushroom will cause gastrointestinal distress if eaten, though, so you don’t want to make that mistake. It isn’t deadly poisonous, but you will seriously

In the world of fungi, there are actually only a small number of poisonous mushrooms that will outright kill you. However, the ones that will kill you are extremely dangerous, and possibly surprising to many, extremely varied. There are colorful, striking mushrooms with deadly toxins, as well as bland, boring, innocent-looking species that are equally

Mushrooms aren’t all brown and boring! There are so many beautiful mushrooms out in the world, in reds and greens and purples and blues, and even some that glow.

The big game is almost here; and if you promise to keep this between us, we think the snacks are… The post Game Day Snacks, Upgraded, Thanks to Mushrooms appeared first on Mushroom Council.

Cooking is not a good or trustworthy way to make poisonous mushrooms safe to eat. Believing that cooking can remove toxins is a very dangerous mindset and can lead to life-threatening consequences. Many of the most dangerous mushroom toxins are heat-stable. These heat-stable toxins can survive boiling, frying, baking, drying, and even pressure cooking. In

Worried you may have eaten a poisonous mushroom? Mistakes happen and don’t let foolish pride stop you from seeking medical care immediately if you experience any of these symptoms!

It can be hard for humans to distinguish safe mushrooms from dangerous ones. So, how do animals know which mushrooms are safe to eat and won’t make them sick or kill them? The Death Cap (Amanita phalloides) is a good example. This mushroom is responsible for most fatal mushroom poisonings in humans (just recently, in

Minuscule jelly baby mushrooms (Leotia species) look like tiny gummy candy mushrooms popping up from the forest floor. They’re also called jelly bellies because they look unnervingly like the little candies. Don’t pick them up and eat them, though! They’re not dangerous, but you’d be in for an unpleasant texture surprise. They’re gelatinous and rubbery,

As we cozy up in the deep winter months, warm comfort food becomes a necessity, but that doesn’t mean dinner… The post Low-Effort, High-Comfort Winter Mushroom Meals appeared first on Mushroom Council.

The all-white, aptly named, snowy waxcap mushroom (Cuphophyllus virgineus) grows across North America in fields, lawns, and wooded areas. It is a pretty adaptable species with a very distinct look. Snowy waxcaps are edible and have a slightly nutty flavor when cooked. These mushrooms do have some tricky lookalikes, so be very diligent in your

The delicate rosy oysterling might catch your eye because it kindof looks like the sought-after edible oyster mushroom. But it gained the oysterling nickname for a reason — it’s a small mushroom, much smaller than true oysters. It’s a cool find in its own right, though, because it’s super cute.

The bitter oyster mushrooms look a lot like a baby oyster mushrooms, the delicious edible ones! Don’t get your hopes up, though—this is the bitter oyster mushroom, and it’s not a true oyster at all. Plus, it tastes pretty terrible. Still, the bitter oyster mushroom (Panellus stipticus) has its own claim to fame: it glows

Mock matsutake, also known as False Matsutake, can be confusing to identify. It closely resembles the true matsutake and often grows in the same places, but it is not the highly sought-after pine mushroom. In North America, the two main mock matsutake species are Catathelasma ventricosum and Catathelasma imperiale. These are mostly separated by region,

Under favourable conditions, bacteria multiply very quickly, depending on the type of bacteria, in as little as 20 to 60 minutes. So what is the trick to preventing bacterial blotch? Ensure that the conditions are not favourable for bacterial blotch, but are favourable for our “own” mushrooms. How do you do this? What are the

The club foot mushroom (Ampulloclitocybe clavipes) is pretty easy to spot thanks to its chunky, swollen stem base. It pops up all over North America, except for the southwest and the lower Rockies, where it’s either missing or super rare. Most of the time, you’ll find it hanging out under conifers, but it’s not too

Many people see mushrooms as simple organisms, but they are anything but that. The mushroom lifecycle is complex, fascinating, and something every forager and enthusiast should understand. Part of finding and foraging mushrooms is also learning their growth process, so you know when to look and what to look for, and at what stage a

Producing substrate for mushroom cultivation has specific and important requirements. It sounds simple to say that mixing the compost is important, but the question is: why is this so, and what exactly is meant by mixing compost? This often turns out to be a point of discussion with course participants. Micro-mixing At first glance, mixing

Finding a great gift for the mushroom lover in your life can be challenging. We’ve got some really cool mushroom gift ideas for the 2025 holiday season, though, to make the process super simple for you! We’ve picked 10 fungi-focused presents that will impress even the most dedicated mycophiles. From practical foraging gear to charming

The poison pie mushroom (Hebeloma crustuliniforme) is an especially dangerous species due to its deceptively ordinary appearance. Don’t let bland looks fool you, though. This mushroom is trouble. In some places, these mushrooms are known as “fairy cakes” because they like to grow in vast fairy rings. This also draws attention to them and increases

The moment we’ve all been waiting for has finally arrived. Today, we celebrate the most captivating, umami-rich creations that have… The post Goodbye 2025, Hello Flavor: The Year’s Top 5 Mushroom Recipes appeared first on Mushroom Council.

The onion stalk parasol (Leucocoprinus cepistipes) is a distinctive mushroom. It is bright white with a bell-shaped cap and often grows in gardens and parks, where it is highly visible. Many people affectionately call it the “Rest Stop Mushroom,” because it so often appears in the neatly landscaped areas at interstate rest stops. The elegant-looking

xml encoding=”UTF-8″–>The lumpy bracket mushroom is one of many bracket-forming polypores that grow on dead and decaying wood. It is commonly confused with others, but there are a few key points, namely the lumpiness of its cap, that can separate it from most other species. The lumpy bracket polypore is probably not native to North