Twig Parachute - Marasmiellus ramealis

The fungal kingdom is fascinating in many ways, if not only because in the same step you can find a mushroom as big as your head, and one smaller than your finger. There is a whole world around us which we can't even begin to imagine, and it is quite special when you spot one of these tiny treasures.

In my case, my latest tiny find was the Twig Parachute, or Marasmiellus ramealis.

Had it not been for the sheer number of these mini mushrooms, I'm not sure I would have seen them. They were growing on a pile of fallen twigs - hence their name.

Their caps are white with a pink tinge to them, and they are usually darker at the centre. They start out convex and become increasingly flattened over time.

The curved stem becomes darker towards the base and their gills are white to pink in colour.

Characteristics

Habitat: On twigs, usually old ones. Often in large groups.
Cap: 3-10mm across, convex then flattened. White to pink in colour, darker at the centre.
Stem: White-pink in colour, darker at the base. Curved.
Gills: Adnate and distant. Pinkish-white.
Spore print: White
Season: Early summer to autumn
Edibility: Inedible

It really pays to look closely for smaller mushrooms - you might be pleasantly surprised!

All photographs taken by my wonderful husband, Matthew Leatherbarrow.

Disclaimer: I am not an expert. Never eat a mushroom you've found without confirmation that it is edible by an expert.

Comments

Milky Conecap - Conocybe apala

Often, I will find a mushroom and never be able to work out what it is. I will spend days searching the internet and looking in books, but never able to solve the mystery. It can be really frustrating. This happened to me at the beginning of May, when I was walking home from an appointment and saw a white mushroom poking out of the grass nearby. It was the first time I'd seen a mushroom in over a month, so I was pretty excited about it. I did what I usually do: took pictures, examined it, made notes. Then I went home to do some research, and couldn't find anything. So I forgot about it. Yesterday, whilst I was doing research for another mushroom, I accidentally clicked on a wrong link and ended up on a page describing the Milky Conecap , or Conocybe apala. I had an "aha!" moment, as I recognised instantly that it was the same mushroom I had spent so long trying to find a name for. Let me tell you, there's nothing more satisfying than putting the final pieces...

Dung Roundhead - Stropharia semiglobata

The start of mushroom season is finally upon us, and I couldn't be more excited. Although the bouts of rain weren't ideal for our wedding last week, they did mean lots of exciting finds during our honeymoon, walking through damp North Wales. I will no doubt make many posts about the intriguing finds we stumbled across during our time away, but I wanted to start at our first fungal encounter, the Dung Roundhead , or Stropharia semiglobata. Scattered across the huge pastures we were walking through were hundreds of them. And though the name suggests they grow exclusively on dung, the majority of them were in fact beside dung. The gills are adnate and ranged in colour depending on the age of the mushroom. Younger ones had a more purplish tinge to them, while the more mature species had black gills. The spore print is a dark purplish-brown colour. Characteristics Habitat: On or beside dung, usually in pasture. Cap: 1-3cm across, hemispherical. Cream to y...

Common Conecap - Conocybe tenera

Lately I've been seeing mushrooms pop up all over the place, which of course excites the little nerd inside of me. Unfortunately, most of the time when I've seen a cluster of mushrooms, I've been on the bus and, being as awful at directions as I am, I can never remember where I saw them. Such is life. Today I spotted a couple peeking out from the grass not far from where I found the Milky Conecaps last month. In fact, at first glance I thought that's what they might be. However, it was the afternoon and we hadn't had any rain since yesterday, plus their caps weren't quite long enough. I like to describe Milky Conecaps as looking like almost-closed umbrellas. Instead, these mushrooms looked like tiny hats. So I snapped some pictures, put one in my bag and went on my way. Although they turned out not to be Milky Conecaps, they are still somewhat closely related. These small buddies are called Common Conecaps , or Conocybe tenera. They enjoy simil...

The Shroom Room

Search This Blog