Doing some raking yesterday in the 'wild' bit, where rough grass has been
taken off, I noticed patches of something flat and whitish among the grass
roots. It's weird stuff, quite tough and difficult to scrape even with the
rake.

I take it it's some sort of fungal growth - we've had all sorts of
fascinatingly different toadstools, puffballs, fairy-rings and whatnot down
in that area. I'm wondering if this sort might need attending to, though.
It's in several different places, presumably keeping moisture off the soil
and stopping flowering plants getting more of a hold. Should I worry about
it taking over, or just leave it to do its own thing?

Sue

In article , Sue
writes
Doing some raking yesterday in the 'wild' bit, where rough grass has been
taken off, I noticed patches of something flat and whitish among the grass
roots. It's weird stuff, quite tough and difficult to scrape even with the
rake.

I take it it's some sort of fungal growth - we've had all sorts of
fascinatingly different toadstools, puffballs, fairy-rings and whatnot down
in that area. I'm wondering if this sort might need attending to, though.
It's in several different places, presumably keeping moisture off the soil
and stopping flowering plants getting more of a hold. Should I worry about
it taking over, or just leave it to do its own thing?

It could be the mycelium - the main fungus plant - the toadstools etc
are merely the fruiting bodies.

I'd leave it.
--
Kay Easton

Edward's earthworm page:
http://www.scarboro.demon.co.uk/garden/

On Sun, 17 Nov 2002 15:57:07 -0000, "Sue"
wrote:

Doing some raking yesterday in the 'wild' bit, where rough grass has been
taken off, I noticed patches of something flat and whitish among the grass
roots. It's weird stuff, quite tough and difficult to scrape even with the
rake.

I take it it's some sort of fungal growth - we've had all sorts of
fascinatingly different toadstools, puffballs, fairy-rings and whatnot down
in that area. I'm wondering if this sort might need attending to, though.
It's in several different places, presumably keeping moisture off the soil
and stopping flowering plants getting more of a hold. Should I worry about
it taking over, or just leave it to do its own thing?


Are you sure there isn't a lump of wood just below the surface?
Most 'hard' fungi are found growing out of a wood matrix.... have a
poke about underneath the stuff.

Regards,



--
Stephen Howard - Woodwind repairs & period restorations
http://www.shwoodwind.co.uk
Emails to: showard{who is at}shwoodwind{dot}co{dot}uk

They sound like Dog Lichens ( GW magazine Aug, pg 45 ). I had them and they
are difficult to rake out as the tines only break off little bits instead of
the whole patch. I wouldn't worry too much in a wild area but they did look
messy in the lawn. They look very much like grey/brown, flat bits of wood,
with curled up edges.

The article said - They cause no long-term damage. Remove by raking with a
spring-tine rake. Ensure soil is well drained and aerated.

"Martin & Anna Sykes" wrote
They sound like Dog Lichens ( GW magazine Aug, pg 45 ).
snip

I still have the mag so checked the piccy but that's not it. This is a
distinct whitish substance, for want of a better word, level with the
ground. Ach, it's times like this I wish I had a scanner.

There's no buried wood, I know, because this area used to be part of an
arable field and was subsoiled and rotovated before it was grassed.

Kay's suggestion of a build up of mycelium seems a possibility. I've tried
googling for some info and turned up one site with a picture that
looks -vaguely- like my weird stuff although my patches seem a bit denser
and more on the surface. See this page towards the bottom - takes
a few moments to load:
http://helios.bto.ed.ac.uk/bto/microbes/basidio.htm

Looks like fairy rings may be the cause, and we have had some that look
like the toadstools shown. Seems you can water the areas affected with
dilute washing-up liquid if it gets to be a problem. I think I'll just
spike the worst bits with a fork and otherwise leave it to see what happens
for the time being. Don't want to make any fairies at the bottom of my
garden homeless!

It's amazing what odd things you find turning up.

Thanks everyone for the suggestions.

Sue