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Rubbery Looking Fungi

Dean.allenDean.allen Posts: 2
in Fruit & veg
Hello, I've attempted my very first veg garden ever this year and am using raised beds. I have loads of rubbery like fungi appearing through the compost today, mainly around the broccoli plants. I've attached a photo. Any advise what I should do or is this normal/OK ? thx.

Posts

  • HelixHelix Posts: 631
    edited May 2019
    Looks like an auricularia or peziza of some sort.  Did you add any chipped wood to your veg patch as auricularia usually grow on rotting wood? Or manure, as peziza prefer that?  Not harmful, but equally not edible.  (Well one of the auricularia is, but not worth it to my taste).
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    Hi @Dean.allen 😊 
    Don’t worry ... it’s normal and harmless ... they’re just the fruiting bodies of the mycelium that works in the soil to break down the organic matter and make it accessible to the roots of your plants. 

    I’m not sure what sort it is... one of the cup fungi maybe ... it may well not be edible but it won’t have any harmful impact on your plants. 

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • josusa47josusa47 Posts: 3,530
    Welcome to the forum Dean, and to the joys of growing incredible edibles!  It looks as though you've mulched with manure or compost, an excellent practice, and the fungus is doing what fungus does, breaking down organic material into water-soluble nutrients that your plants can take up.  The visible parts of a fungus are the reproductive parts, the fungus equivalent of flowers, and will disappear in a few days.  The rest of the fungus is a mesh of fine threads, called mycelium, growing through the soil.
  • Dean.allenDean.allen Posts: 2
    Brilliant, thanks everybody. Yes when I filled the beds I started with sand at the bottom, then a layer of mulch, then compost on top. Sounds like the mulch has encouraged the fungi. I've never gardened before but have a spare 5m square now the kids are too old for their trampoline. Decided to try a veg garden. thanks again.
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