Lawn Fungus/Mushroom?
 

A couple of years ago I took down a tree that was dying. I had the
stump ground down, but of course all the root structure is still
underground.

Since then, I've noticed a lot of what I think are mushrooms that I
can only describe as resembling cauliflower growing in that same area
of my lawn. When I Googled it, I found this:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/anitagould/3705574945/

which is exactly what I have.

First, please, don't anyone tell me that they're beautiful and helpful
and that I should leave them alone. They're going. Period. This my
damn front lawn.

To remove them, I end up taking out big divets of my lawn, and they
still grown back in different locations. Basically, each week before
I mow, I go around with a shovel and dig up the weeks growth of these
things.

Any thoughts on getting rid of them would be helpful.
ANY other input would not.

Lawn Fungus/Mushroom?
 

On 9/9/2012 7:47 AM, Don Green wrote:

A couple of years ago I took down a tree that was dying. I had the
stump ground down, but of course all the root structure is still
underground.

Since then, I've noticed a lot of what I think are mushrooms that I
can only describe as resembling cauliflower growing in that same area
of my lawn. When I Googled it, I found this:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/anitagould/3705574945/

which is exactly what I have.

First, please, don't anyone tell me that they're beautiful and helpful
and that I should leave them alone. They're going. Period. This my
damn front lawn.

To remove them, I end up taking out big divets of my lawn, and they
still grown back in different locations. Basically, each week before
I mow, I go around with a shovel and dig up the weeks growth of these
things.

Any thoughts on getting rid of them would be helpful.
ANY other input would not.


Well, obviously, the mushrooms are the fruiting bodies of the fungus
colony that is growing on the decaying roots left behind from your
tree. You have two options, the first being: dig up the lawn and
remove all of the remaining roots and the surrounding soil that
contains the fungus. Since that's a ridiculous proposition, you take
option number two, which is simply: let nature take its course. Over
time, the roots will continue decomposing, and as less of that organic
matter is left in the soil, the size of the fungal colony and the
number of mushrooms will decrease until they're pretty much gone. In
the meantime, every time a mushroom pops up, you remove it.

Ain't nature grand?

Lawn Fungus/Mushroom?
 

HellT wrote:
....
Well, obviously, the mushrooms are the fruiting bodies of the fungus
colony that is growing on the decaying roots left behind from your
tree. You have two options, the first being: dig up the lawn and
remove all of the remaining roots and the surrounding soil that
contains the fungus. Since that's a ridiculous proposition, you take
option number two, which is simply: let nature take its course. Over
time, the roots will continue decomposing, and as less of that organic
matter is left in the soil, the size of the fungal colony and the
number of mushrooms will decrease until they're pretty much gone. In
the meantime, every time a mushroom pops up, you remove it.

which is sorta like pulling a whisker off a
goat, except the goat might notice.

the idea that pulling the fruiting bodies off
a fungi is going to kill or deplete the fungi is
rather funny. but who am i to deprive the neighbors
of their entertainment?

the same kind of people use anti-fungal agents
to kill the fungi, which may actually accomplish
something, but eventually the fungi will return
as long as there are nutrients to be had from
decomposing wood.


Ain't nature grand?

yep.


songbird

Lawn Fungus/Mushroom?
 

On 9/11/2012 6:28 PM, songbird wrote:
HellT wrote:
...
Well, obviously, the mushrooms are the fruiting bodies of the fungus
colony that is growing on the decaying roots left behind from your
tree. You have two options, the first being: dig up the lawn and
remove all of the remaining roots and the surrounding soil that
contains the fungus. Since that's a ridiculous proposition, you take
option number two, which is simply: let nature take its course. Over
time, the roots will continue decomposing, and as less of that organic
matter is left in the soil, the size of the fungal colony and the
number of mushrooms will decrease until they're pretty much gone. In
the meantime, every time a mushroom pops up, you remove it.

which is sorta like pulling a whisker off a
goat, except the goat might notice.

the idea that pulling the fruiting bodies off
a fungi is going to kill or deplete the fungi is
rather funny. but who am i to deprive the neighbors
of their entertainment?

I dunno where you got that idea from what I wrote, but no, removing
the mushrooms won't do anything to the fungal colony. Since the OP
hates looking at them, he can just kick them over, rake them up, mince
them with the mower, or take a golf club and practice his swing.

The point is, there's nothing that will take out that fungal colony,
short of removing the soil that it resides in. That's a huge project
for a comparatively small issue, which is why most people end up just
letting nature take its course. But if the OP has the time, the money,
and the motivation, go for it.


the same kind of people use anti-fungal agents
to kill the fungi, which may actually accomplish
something,

Not much, since you won't get thorough soil penetration to the
necessary depth without completely saturating the lawn. Again, it's
using a nuke against a mosquito.

You see this problem a lot in new developments. Not all of the
construction debris gets picked up, and some of it gets graded under.
A year or so later, mushrooms are sprouting above the chunks of
two-by-four and pieces of plywood under the lawn. Those are usually
not as major a project to uncover and remove, but it's still a hassle.

Cut your grass regularly and dispose all the leaves and clippings and make sure you keep your lawn area very clean. Water your lawn sparingly in the morning so that the water will get deep into the roots. Do not keep you lawn wet as mushrooms like moisture a lot. Remove all the organic compost material from your lawn because mushrooms grow faster when they get compostable material. Clear the decay woods or logs. Use proper chemical free fertilizer and make sure to balance the nitrogen levels in your soil. Do not feed too much nitrogen because it helps mushroom grow faster. Pick mushrooms regularly before they get too big.