Species details
Snowy waxcap
Cuphophyllus virgineus
Traditionally edible
Photo: Strobilomyces · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Photo source · License
Description
A white to cream grassland mushroom with thick, widely spaced gills running well down the stem.
Identification features
Cap 3–6 cm, convex at first, then flat and sometimes depressed when old, white with an occasionally slightly ochre centre. Gills are white, widely spaced, thick, broad and strongly decurrent.
Identification checklist
Check the nearly all-white colour, thick widely spaced strongly decurrent gills and grassland habitat.
How to separate similar species
White grassland mushrooms include species from other genera. White colour alone is insufficient; the waxy texture and widely spaced gills matter.
Habitat
Grows on acidic meadows and woodland-edge pastures among grass and moss, in groups in late summer and autumn.
Fruiting period
August, September, October
Similar species
- Meadow waxcap (Cuphophyllus pratensis)
- Cuphophyllus lacmus
- Clitocybe species