Species details
Spring fieldcap
Agrocybe praecox
Traditionally edible
Photo: Tatiana · CC BY 4.0 · Photo source · License
Description
A spring fieldcap with a pale ochre cap, fleeting white ring and browning gills, often on woody debris or rich soil.
Identification features
The cap is 2.5–6 cm, yellow-ochre to cream and may crack when dry. Gills start pale and become dirty ochre-brown. The whitish stem has a hanging, fleeting ring when young.
Identification checklist
Key clues are early fruiting, a pale cap, gills turning brown and a fleeting ring. Woody debris is common substrate but not obligatory.
How to separate similar species
Agrocybe dura is usually fleshier, while Cyclocybe cylindracea is much more strongly tied to wood. Check spore print and ring as well.
Habitat
Grows in woodland, parks, pastures, scrub and on woody debris from spring to early summer.
Fruiting period
April, May, June
Similar species
- Agrocybe dura
- Poplar fieldcap (Cyclocybe cylindracea)
- Agrocybe pediades