Mushrooms or toadstools are the fruiting bodies of fungi. Fungi live below ground in the soil but every so often (usually in late summer and autumn) they throw up their fruiting bodies in order to increase their populations. Mushrooms and toadstools produce spores, which act like seeds and are blown around on the wind or transported by animals – if they land in a suitable place they can germinate and grow into new fungal networks.
Mushrooms are a sign of a healthy soil environment, and indeed fungal networks are responsible for helping plants absorb nutrients and can even help plants relay information to each other, such as pest attacks or drought. Fungi is therefore an important part of the garden ecosystem and – where possible – should be left alone. However, if you want a perfect lawn, mushrooms that form ‘fairy rings’ may be an annoyance. Elsewhere in the garden, mushrooms may be an indication of the presence of honey fungus, which often has wider implications for garden plants.
While most mushrooms are harmless, some are toxic, so it’s important not to touch, harvest or eat any mushrooms before getting a clear identification from an expert.
Why are mushrooms growing in my garden?
Fungi, including mushrooms, thrive on decaying organic matter. An abundance of mushrooms may therefore be a sign of rotting woody material buried in the ground, such as the roots of a dead shrub or tree, or an indicator of a buildup of dead grass and moss – known as ‘thatch’ – in the lawn itself. It’s important to remember that dead wood and other rotting material are a good thing in gardens and fungi is nature’s way of breaking it down.
Is it good or bad for mushrooms to grow on my lawn?
The presence of mushrooms usually indicates a diverse and healthy soil environment, so overall fungi in lawns is a good thing. However, if the mushrooms are the fruiting bodies of honey fungus then this may lead to the death of some of your garden plants. In the first instance, getting a positive identification on your mushrooms can help you determine whether you have a problem or not.
Another type of fungi that can appear on a lawn are those that form fairy rings. These produce circles of fungi that can develop up to several metres across, accentuated by dark green, lush grass outside the mushroom or toadstool ring, where the grass is feeding on the nutrients released by the fungi.
Can you eat mushrooms that grow in your lawn?
While the term ‘mushroom’ is widely used to describe fungi that are edible, this is a generally used term rather than a definition of something that can be eaten. Never eat fungi unless it has been clearly identified as safe by a recognised expert. To find out more about mushrooms, look for foraging sessions in your area, to learn about edible plants that can be harvested from the wild.
How to get rid of mushrooms in your lawn
In the first instance where unwanted mushrooms have developed, remove them physically by hand soon after the mushrooms appear, before they mature and spread their spores. With gloves on, pull up larger mushrooms. Use a stiff-bristled garden broom to scatter clusters of smaller ones, ideally on a dry, sunny day when the fungi quickly shrivel to a fraction of their size.
Discourage mushrooms from developing in future by making the lawn environment cleaner, drier, and airier, all of which are less welcoming to fungi. Rake up fallen twigs and leaves in autumn and cut the lawn regularly as short grass dries much faster than if left long. Scarify (rake) to remove the layer of dead grass and moss that builds up on the surface of a lawn.
To remove fairy rings from your lawn, scarify and aerate the area and then oversow with grass seed to fill in bare patches. However, this won’t remove the fungi living below the soil surface and you will almost certainly find the fairy rings keep coming back year after year. This is to be expected and ultimately you should learn to live with them.
Are lawn mushrooms poisonous to dogs in the UK?
While many mushrooms are harmless, some are toxic and so the safest approach is the precautionary one – assume that mushrooms are poisonous unless identified otherwise. If you suspect your dog has eaten something poisonous, contact a vet immediately. Symptoms of poisoning include excessive salivation, vomiting, diarrhoea, loss of balance, and seizures.
