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Mushrooms growing in my pots?!?

S

silverwing

I live in south Florida and its been raining quite a bit lately. I just went out to check on my potted red bells (and others) to find 15-20 brown mushroom heads about a inch tall growing from the soil in the potted red bells.

I have no idea if these guys are bad or not, I was hoping for some help on what to do with them. Thanks. :)
 
I have mushrooms growing in some of my pots too, I think the spores are in the chunks of bark that came in the potting soil and escaped steam sterilization. I just pluck them out when I see them, they are no harm really and are probably just consuming the rotting bark.
 
Mushrooms are decomposers. Unless you are conversant with mushrooms, just pull them up and dispose of them. Many mushrooms can kill you D-E-D in minutes if injested. With mushrooms- sometimes it takes more than just a picture to know what you have collected or growing wild.
 
I just read around a little and some people claim that it can be beneficial to vegetable plants, the only precaution is to be sure that you wash the fruits really well before consuming. I also had no intention on picking these guys to eat or anything close. I just wanted to know if they can/will hurt or help my plants is all. Appreciate the info guys. :)
 
^ Actually they're probably beneficial; the "mushroom" is the fruit of the mycelium which is the "body" of the fungus.

From Wikipedia; Mycelium is vital in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems for its role in the decomposition of plant material. It contributes to the organic fraction of soil, and its growth releases carbon dioxide back into the atmosphere. The mycelium of mycorrhizal fungi increases the efficiency of water and nutrient absorption of most plants and confers resistance to some plant pathogens. Mycelium is an important food source for many soil invertebrates.

If you have mushrooms growing in your media, then it is likely healthy; so leave it be. Pulling the fruit doesn't affect the fungus body anyway, so why bother?
Cheers.
 
I grow outdoors in the ground(raised beds) and in containers. I used a mushroom type compost as an ammendment to the soil. If I don't allow th area to dry totally before watering again(which NEVER happens), I will have several different types growing in clusters. They are a visual sign that you have good microbial life in the soil. Microbial life helps the plants uptake their nutrients at a more efficient rate. If you think they are ugly, pull 'em out. You can throw them back into compost if you want, but they will reappear the next year. Anyhow it is not a problem.

Happy Growing!!!!
 
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