Wild Plant Identification: Mushrooms & Fungi

Function

• Fungi are organisms that almost defy classification, with many scientists considering them neither animals nor plants. They live in the soil or near the surface and survive by consuming either dead or living plant material, such as leaves, stumps, logs and roots. Mushrooms are the fruiting parts of fungi and produce spores, the reproductive cells of fungi.

Identification

• Mushrooms come in many sizes, colors and shapes. Some look like umbrellas, with a rounded cap above a stem. The color of the tiny spores on the underside of the cap may help in determining the species of mushroom, although sometimes the spores must be analyzed under a microscope for proper identification.

Expert Insight

• Since many mushrooms are dangerous if consumed, expert identification is important. A field guide may help but shouldn't be the only method used to determine if a mushroom is safe to eat. "The poisonous varieties are often dead ringers for other edible, tasty species," Jennifer Skene states in her article, "In the Garden of Good and Evil" in the Berkeley Science Review.