I noticed these growing in a pot beneath a little japanese maple. I know little brown mushrooms are hard to identify, anyone have any ideas?
Well, they look like seriously squarrose birds nest fungi. Can you tell me what they are growing on - ground or wood or ? I can see that each has a brown haze under it, but I can't tell if that is a wood chip or something else. If it is a birds nest fungi of some sort (eg Cyathus or other genus), it would open at the top at maturity and there would be peridioles, little egg shaped spore cases, inside.
They are growing in a bark based container media with a japanese maple. It's partially composted bark (a product called soil conditioner), part off the shelf potting mix, and part calcined clay (turface). The tan areas you see under the fungus bodies are in fact part of the fungus. Each little fruiting body is smaller than the eraser end of a pencil. It looked really strange to me, like clumps of furry little tubes.
Looking at Cyathus as frog suggested Im convinced that's what it is. Thanks. I'll take another picture when the 'nests' open up.
Oh my gosh! I just discovered mushrooms that look very similar growing on the dirt around a 7' Night Blooming Jasmine. Compost was put around the base of the tree in early spring. I just wonder, could they have come from the compost?
the spore very possibly came with the compost? but don't be alarmed...as small as they are they're not dangerous to YOU unless u decide to try and inhale them (don't reccomend!).......and they're actually good for u'r soil as it helps to enrich it for growing! neat little mushrooms.......the 'eggs' are the spore sacs..or? the 'seed'....when rain drops hit them they'll explode up into the air to float to new host areas to continue their cycle
