Grifola frondosa
Found mainly on broad leafed trees. Oak, Sweet Chestnut. The fruiting bodies of this fungus form a clump of individual fronds which are each stalked. They can resemble Meripulus giganteus in habit, but Grifola has a grey/light brown colour with less pronounced radial zone markings. They can also be easily identified from Meripulus by the fact that the white underside wont bruise to black when pressed with a thumb, while Meripulus will.
Its flesh is very soft and easily squashed. A number of identification books suggest its smell as being 'mousey'. Not being much of a mouse sniffer I cant comment but I found the underside smelling very strongly of 'mushroom' with the topside much less so. One of the following pictures shows a close up of the tube layer which is soft and 'juicy'.
These pictures, by John Hearne, show a clump of fronds growing at the base of an Oak tree located at Burley, Hampshire.
Photographs and scans by Chris Skellern. These show Grifola growing on Oak. Below is a poor photograph taken in low light conditions so the white undersides have responded too brightly to the flash!
Please Note: Many Fungi are toxic and individual reactions to them vary widely. Do not touch or eat fungi unless you have accurately identified them. The AIE can not accept any legal responsibility or liability for errors in identification or for individual reactions to the consumption of fungi.
