Why do mushrooms grow in your garden?

MUSHROOMS and toadstools are the fleshy, spore-bearing and fruiting body of a fungus.

Here’s everything you need to know about why they grow in your garden.

Why do mushrooms grow in your garden?

Mushrooms love humid, warm and wet conditions.

They also do well in decaying organic matter, so if you’ve cut your lawn and stored the cuttings or have a damp log pile, it could provide the perfect home.

Garden expert Laura Andrews at The Planting Company said: “Lots of people believe that mushrooms are a sign of poor lawn health.

“However, they only grow when the soil is healthy, and more importantly, they don’t cause any harm to your grass.”

How do you grow mushrooms in your garden?

To actively grow them, loosen the soil beneath the turf with a garden fork and add extra organic matter, such as well-rotted manure or garden compost.

Avoid chemical fertilisers — mushrooms won’t grow in these conditions.

Also, if you want a garden flush with fungi, don’t mow the lawn.

Short grass dries quicker and provides less moisture for mushrooms to grow.

Aerated lawns are better for drainage and airflow, which also prevents fungus from thriving.

There are numerous ways to grow mushrooms. 

You can buy mushroom spawn to grow in beds or boxes filled with compost or manure.

Alternatively you could choose a mushroom growing kit, which usually includes the spawn and growing media (such as wood shavings or straw). 

If you have access to recently chopped logs, you can buy wooden dowels or plugs that have been impregnated with spawn.

You should drill holes in the log before inserting the plugs or dowels.

Can you eat mushrooms that grow in your garden?

Although most species won’t be poisonous, it is best that kids or pets don’t eat them unless you can confidently identify every specific mushroom.

And if you see them growing on trees, you may wish to get an expert involved.

Calum Maddock at HomeHow.co.uk said: “If you see mushrooms growing on the trees in your garden, it’s worth getting in an expert to check them over as it’s usually a sign that they’re dying.”

Laura explained how to remove fungus from lawns, saying: “Pull the mushrooms out of the grass from the base, as this will help stop the spread and will reduce the risk of children or pets eating them.”

How can you tell the difference between poisonous and edible mushrooms?

In short, you can't tell the difference without positively identifying each individual mushroom, but here are some handy tips for keeping safe...

Here are some general rules for avoiding poisonous mushrooms if you are not an expert:

• Avoid mushrooms with white gills, a skirt or ring on the stem and a bulbous or sack like base called a volva — you might be miss out on some delicious edible fungi, but you will avoid members of the deadly Amanita family.
• Avoid mushrooms with red on the cap or stem — again you might be missing out on some tasty ’shrooms, but you most probably won’t be picking poisonous ones.
• NEVER consume any mushrooms unless you are 100% certain of what they are — this but it is by far the most important rule.

The following UK mushrooms are relatively easy to identify and are safe to eat:

• Giant Puffball
• Beefsteak Fungus
• Porcelain Fungus
• Cauliflower Fungus
• Dryads Saddle
• Hedgehog Fungus
• Truffle (if you are lucky enough to come across it)
• Wood Ears (as long as they grow on elder trees/shrubs)
• Chicken of the Woods (as long they are NOT growing on a Yew tree)