Tricholoma scoides (Pers.) C. Martín

Taxonomy

Phylum: Basidiomycota

Class: Agaricomycetes

Order: Agaricales

An uncommon find under broad-leaf trees, almost invariably on calcareous soil, Tricholoma scoides often has reddish or lilaceous tints, which are a help in identification; however, there are several other greyish-capped lookalikes in the genus Tricholoma and separating them with confidence is difficult.

This inedible mushroom appears in autumn, often in small groups beneath mature beech and oak trees.

Identification Guide

	Cap Up to 12cm in diameter when fully mature, the caps are usually grey, darker in the centre and with radial lines. Initially convex, the caps flatten, sometimes with a slight umbo.
	Gills Moderately well spaced apart, the sinuate gills are white with tiny dark flecks on their edges.
Stem	Typically 10 to 20mm in diameter and 4 to 8cm long,broadening slightly towards the base, the stem is off-white and has longitudinal grey fibrils, most noticeable in its central region.
Spore print	White.
Odour/taste	No noticeable odour.
Habitat	Broad-leaf woodland, mainly with Beech and oaks.
Season	July to October.
Occurrence	Uncommon.
Similar species	Tricholoma terreum is similar in appearance but occurs mainly in coniferous woodland.

Reference Sources

Fascinated by Fungi, Pat O'Reilly 2011

Dictionary of the Fungi; Paul M. Kirk, Paul F. Cannon, David W. Minter and J. A. Stalpers; CABI, 2008

Taxonomic history and synonym information on these pages is drawn from many sources but in particular from the British Mycological Society's GB Checklist of Fungi and (for basidiomycetes) on Kew's Checklist of the British & Irish Basidiomycota.