If you’ve noticed brown mushrooms popping up overnight in your yard or garden beds, you’re not alone. Many gardeners find these sudden mushroom sightings curious while others may feel concerned about their spontaneous growth. But rest assured – brown mushrooms in your lawn or flowerbeds are perfectly natural. In this article we’ll explore reasons behind brown mushroom growth, how to identify them, and smart ways to manage mushrooms in your garden ecosystem.
Why Brown Mushrooms Grow in Gardens
Seeing mushrooms sprouting up is actually a normal part of the garden lifecycle. Mushrooms and other fungi play a vital role in soil health. They form beneficial relationships with plant roots, helping shuttle hard-to-access nutrients like phosphorus.
Species like agarics, puffballs, and shaggy manes do well in lawns and garden beds that have been changed. They get their food from things that break down naturally, like grass clippings, dead leaves, wood chips, and compost. Mushrooms love to live in garden soil that is healthy and has lots of organic matter.
Finding mushrooms in your garden means that the soil is full of good bacteria and fungi. It’s a clear sign of the work that’s going on below the ground’s surface. Mushrooms can grow so quickly that they often emerge overnight.
Common Brown Mushroom Species
While wild mushroom species vary by region, several brown mushroom genera frequently appear in gardens worldwide:
- Agaricus – Includes the store-bought button mushroom. In lawns, this genus produces the wide-capped field mushroom.
- Coprinus – The inky cap or shaggy mane is a coprinus mushroom. Its cap deliquesces into an inky black goo as it releases spores.
- Lycoperdon – Puffball mushrooms release clouds of brown powdery spores when touched or rained upon.
- Lepiota – Parasols and scaly lepiotas have brown, scaly caps on slender stems.
Use a mushroom field guide or trusted online source to properly identify any brown mushrooms in your yard. Compare all parts like cap shape, gill color and stem texture.
Are Garden Mushrooms Harmful?
In most cases, brown mushrooms are harmless or even beneficial additions to gardens:
- Common species coexist naturally with lawn grasses, spreading via underground networks.
- They don’t compete directly with plants for light and nutrients.
- Exceptions are honey fungus that can damage woody plant roots and chicken of the woods that parasitizes living tree trunks.
But overall, brown mushrooms signal healthy soil biology. Their fruiting bodies don’t directly harm other plants. Consider them fascinating examples of nature at work!
Managing Mushrooms in Your Garden
If mushrooms present no issues, enjoy observing them! But you can take actions to remove types you’d rather not see:
- Pick mushrooms to prevent spore release. Discard in yard waste, not compost.
- For recurring mushrooms, scrape away the top 1-2 inches of soil containing spores and mycelium.
- Improve drainage and reduce compaction to make the environment less mushroom-friendly.
- Allow grass to dry between waterings and mow higher to discourage fungi.
- Apply lime to raise soil pH, as most mushrooms prefer acidic conditions.
- Re-seed any dead patches where mushrooms concentrate.
Remember mushrooms will likely reappear if conditions are right. Accepting them as part of a diverse garden ecosystem is often easiest!
The Takeaway
Don’t be alarmed by mushrooms in your yard or beds. They indicate healthy soil biology at work. Identify mushrooms accurately and control only problematic types like those causing root damage. With smart identification and containment, most brown mushrooms can be appreciated for their fascinating ecosystem roles.
Natural Ways to Kill Mushrooms Growing in Your Backyard
It’s easier to reduce or prevent mushrooms by managing the conditions in your yard than to kill them.
Underground fungal mycelium networks are widespread and well hidden, so digging them up or using commercial fungicides will not remove them.
Fungicides often don’t work well on mushrooms because they don’t penetrate the soil deep enough to reach the mycelium and kill the fungus.
It’s also not advisable to use toxic chemicals and fungicides in areas where children or pets play.
But, if you really want to get rid of the mushrooms in your backyard, try these natural methods:
One way to kill off mushrooms growing in your yard is to spray them with a vinegar solution.
Household or cooking vinegar is usually not strong enough. Horticultural vinegar is very potent, so find some if you can and follow the directions to dilute it to the right strength.
Using a spray bottle will make it easier to apply the vinegar to the mushrooms but be careful where you spray as the vinegar may also kill the surrounding grass or plants.
Baking soda is a safer option. It’s not a fungicide, but it will raise the pH of the soil, which will stop the mushrooms from growing.
Baking soda is not a permanent solution, but it is safe and effective. There are two ways you can go about applying baking soda to your mushrooms.
The first is in liquid form using a spray bottle. Mix two tablespoons of baking soda per gallon (5 liters) of water and stir until it’s dissolved. Spray the mixture onto the mushrooms and the surrounding soil.
Over time, this will reduce the mushroom’s growth and possibly even kill them.
The second method is to sprinkle baking soda directly onto mushrooms and surrounding soil and water it in.
You’ll need to repeat these methods regularly to see results, but they’re inexpensive and safe to use around pets and children.
You might want to think about the fact that any big changes in the pH level of the soil could stop nearby plants from growing.
Commercial dish soap is another easy solution to killing mushrooms in your backyard.
Mix one or two tablespoons of any commercial dish soap with up to three gallons (15 liters) of water.
With a screwdriver or something similar, poke holes in the soil around the mushrooms. Pour the soapy water over the mushrooms and into the holes.
Repeat the process several times a day for a week, and you’ll see a dramatic reduction in mushrooms.
For this to work, soapy water needs to get deep into the soil where the fungi live.
But, not everyone wants to get rid of mushrooms in their backyards.
For those of you who want an ongoing supply of fresh mushrooms, let’s take a look at the different ways you can grow mushrooms in your backyard.
Field or Meadow Mushroom (Agaricus Campestris)
The field or meadow mushroom is one of the most eaten wild mushrooms in Britain and Ireland. It’s closely related to the common button mushroom and has a similar taste and texture.
You’ll find them growing alone or in groups, arcs or gradually expanding rings called fairy rings, in fields, meadows and lawns.
Their caps are creamy-white and 1-4 inches (3-10cm) in diameter. The caps edges usually remain down-turned or rolled inwards even when the mushroom is mature.
When you cut the cap, the flesh should be thick and white, sometimes turning slightly pink but should never turn yellow.
Like portobellos, their gills start out deep pink becoming brown and eventually dark brown when the mushroom matures.
You might mistake some other types of mushrooms for field mushrooms. Some of them are edible, but some are poisonous.
What To Do About MUSHROOMS In The Garden?
FAQ
Are the brown mushrooms in my yard poisonous?
Many lawn mushrooms are not harmful, but some are poisonous and can kill you, like those in the Amanita genus.
Should I remove mushrooms from my garden?
The answer, in general, is that mushrooms in your garden are fine. Actually, the mushroom you see is just the portion of a larger fungal network that lives in all living soil all the time.
Do mushrooms indicate healthy soil?
Fungi, slime molds, and beneficial bacteria are workhorses for our soils. They show where trees and other plants can grow in healthy soil, and they don’t hurt the garden.
What does it mean when brown mushrooms grow in your yard?
Mushrooms growing on the lawn indicate the presence of organic material under the surface. It’s probably old tree roots or the stump decomposing. The tree might have died a decade ago, but it takes years for it to fully decompose. Maybe some wood or mulch was buried a while ago.
Why do mushrooms grow in my garden?
Mushrooms growing in your garden mean that your soil is healthy. Mushrooms are fungi. They do not have typical roots. This means that they aren’t able to eat the same way as plants do. For mushrooms to eat, they need to attach themselves to the roots of your vegetables or feed on the nutrients in your soil.
Why do mushrooms appear in my lawn?
Mushrooms are the reproductive or fruiting structures of fungi. Their appearance in the lawn usually indicates decaying tree stumps or roots in the soil. In garden beds, mushrooms can appear because they are associated with decaying organic matter which could be dead roots, stumps, or mulch.
How can I prevent mushroom infestations in my raised bed garden?
Soil Health: Foster overall soil health by amending your garden bed with organic matter and using natural fertilizers. Healthy soil is less inviting to mushroom growth. Armed with knowledge and effective strategies, you can manage and prevent mushroom infestations in your raised bed garden.
How can you identify a yard mushroom?
To identify a yard mushroom, carefully examine its key features. Look at the cap shape, color, texture, gills or pores underneath, and stalk shape and color. Additionally, some mushrooms have distinctive odors that can help identify the species. You can also tell some types of yard mushrooms by where they are growing.
Are mushrooms in your garden a good sign?
In most cases, the conditions in which mushrooms thrive are good for your garden and mushrooms are a sign of healthy soil with good moisture retention and lots of organic matter. So, if mushrooms are appearing then you probably have a good environment for growing plants. Are Mushrooms In Your Garden Soil A Good Or Bad Sign?.
Are mushrooms growing in my yard dangerous?
People often see mushrooms growing in their front or back yards. They can show up almost right away in lawns and gardens after it rains or in places with a lot of humidity. Some mushrooms growing in the yard are harmless, whereas others can be toxic and harmful if ingested. Knowing how to identify common yard mushrooms is crucial.