Any idea on this large white lawn mushroom?

Hi,



That's the top of one. It's a smaller one, probably about 3-4" across. Some are more like 5-6".



That's the bottom and stem of him. He just opened up this morning, he starts with a very white stalk and his top curled around like a ball. As they age the stalk gets more brown, and the stalk is pretty woody. The ring does not move, it's firmly attached.

I was toying with the idea of him being a Parasol or Lepiota Procera. But I'm not happy with his spore print so far.

This new guy sat on a white piece of paper all night, but I got nothing. I don't think it was white because the paper doesn't feel like anything was deposited on it. Maybe I shouldn't have left it outside all night.

I have some older guys like him - I picked them two days ago and did some spore prints that day. But I admit, it rained a lot the day before picking and they were a bit soggy. I thought maybe they were molding in their gills. Or maybe part of the identification is going green in the gill as it gets older.





That's the bottom and top of one of the guys I picked when it was soggy and turning greenish underneath. The green isn't visible in the picture - I don't know if it seeped in or all fell off or what.

The spore prints for these ones that were sitting there in the ground perhaps 3-4 days since they opened up flat - turned out green.



So, looking at my National Audubon Society Field Guide to Mushrooms, I wouldn't think these are Lepiota Procera, but perhaps the Green-Spored Lepiota. But I don't like the picture of the green spored from my book so much, as in it's youth the top is smooth white and mine are not. Also, mine have more "scales", "bumps" whatever you want to call them, looking more like the procera.

Nancy

It helps to put a bowl over the mushroom when you are doing the spore print. That said, it looks like the green spored lepiotas i get all over northfield and wilmette. Not edible!

Nancy S wrote:Hi,



That's the top of one. It's a smaller one, probably about 3-4" across. Some are more like 5-6".



That's the bottom and stem of him. He just opened up this morning, he starts with a very white stalk and his top curled around like a ball. As they age the stalk gets more brown, and the stalk is pretty woody. The ring does not move, it's firmly attached.

I was toying with the idea of him being a Parasol or Lepiota Procera. But I'm not happy with his spore print so far.

This new guy sat on a white piece of paper all night, but I got nothing. I don't think it was white because the paper doesn't feel like anything was deposited on it. Maybe I shouldn't have left it outside all night.

The size would certainly suggest a Parasol. I am a bit confused by your taxonomy- the Latin name for the Parasol is Macrolepiota procera and in googling Lepiota Procera I am also coming up with the Parasol mushroom, my books all use the aforementioned Macro prefix in the name. Does the mushroom have a scaly, snakeskin like pattern on its stem? That is a primary characteristic of the Parasol. Also, its spore print should be white and you may have to look very closely at the surface of the print to detect it.

That said, I believe your second mushroom is a different variety, those look like green spores to me and not mold.

I am new to Lepiotas, having just discovered them in my area this season. The size and snake-skim patterning on the specimens I found lead me to believe that I indeed found Parasol, a choice edible. However, there are many poisonous species in this family, so I am hesitant to start nibbling.

The mushroom is old, so it is hard to tell. It does indeed look like a parasol mushroom. Still, without expert identification, I would stay far away from anything with white gills and white flesh and an anulus (veil). Parasols look very close to mushrooms of the genus Amanita. and are most commonly mistaken for them. Most Amanitas are extremely deadly and are commonly known as Death Angels , Destroying Angels or Death Caps. Unless absolutely certain, I would stay away from any fungus with white flesh and white gills, especially with a white spore print.