"Isabella Woodhouse" wrote in message
...
In article ,
Jan Flora wrote:

In article
,
Isabella Woodhouse wrote:

Out picking beans yesterday, I noted the appearance of three huge
fungi,
one at the inner base of each pole, on one "teepee" of my pole beans.
This is the first I noticed them so I have no idea how long they've
been
there. Seems like it can't be too long since I pick beans at least
every other day. I've searched and searched but cannot seem to find a
pictorial database of fungi so I can identify these critters. They are
a mottle ecru and light adobe color and look similar to those oyster
fungi in that they are kind of layered. But I can't be sure what (or
why) they are since I can't seem to find a large library of pics for
comparison.

The beans are great and don't seem to be affected--- yet anyway. It is
interesting that they are growing at the base of each pole. The beans
on this particular pole are mostly rattlesnake beans but I can't
imagine
the relevance. I wonder if it is some kind of symbiotic relationship.
They are so large, I fear spading them out will ruin the roots of my
bean plants. One is a good 9 inches in diameter. And I can't take a
pic right now since my DH has the camera and is away on business.

Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks.

Here's a place to start looking for photos:

http://mycology.cornell.edu/

I've spent over an hour poking around there and have yet to find a
single database of fungi photos for the US midwest, let alone a
taxonomic reference so that I might at least identify the class of fungi
I'm looking at. This website is sorely outdated, I'm afraid. Nearly
half of the links I've clicked on are dead. Nonetheless, I'll keep
looking as time permits. I've seen hundreds of photos and have yet to
find a single one that looks anything remotely like what we have.

For positive ID, you need to get a spore print. Cut the stalk off a
mushroom cap; put the cap, gills down, on a piece of paper or half on a
dark piece of paper and half on a white piece of paper; put a bowl over
the 'shroom cap. Let it sit for awhile (up to 12 hours), then see what
color spores drop out of the cap.

Thanks so much for responding. These are not mushrooms. There are no
recognizable caps or gills. These things are huge. One is nearly the
size of a loaf of bread.... and growing.

Or if you have a natural history museum or college with a
biology/botany/horticulture dept. in your area, bring them a 'shroom for
ID. There will be someone around who's a fan of fungi who will know what
it is.

Thanks.
--
"I will show you fear in a handful of dust"
-T.S. Eliot

Look at species Ganoderma for starters.
Steve