Mushrooms on Lawn ?

[Bob Sacamano]

last year I had a local guy come in with his bobcat and remove 3 inches of soil and replace with "better soil" this was in response to a soil test I had done where I was told to just "Start Over" ! The lawn was hydro seeded and came in very slowly and I ended up burning it with too much starter fertilizer. This year it was not coming back so a buddy of mine with his brand new $3000.00 aerator machine came in did his thing and then hit it with a ton of seed and starter fertilizer and now the lawn looks the best it has ever.. Except for some mushrooms here and there.. btw.. this lawn is in the North East.

Why am I getting mushrooms?

How do get rid of them - chemically? I read if I dig them out along with 2 inches of surround soil that would work but I would rather not..

What happens if I eat these mushrooms? I am told the lawn will look even better to me if I do.. ;-) - I am just kidding if you can answer the first 2 questions - Thank you.

Bob

[Stubby]

Acid soil. You could take a mixture of 5 samples to a local Extension Service and have it analyzed to verify that.

Apply lime, real lime, not pelletized limestone. Buy it in a tile supply store. It will be about $5 per 50 lb bag.

Lime is messy to apply and I'm hoping that the new "pH Plus" and "Liquid Lime" will work out. They are applied with a hose-end sprayer. My first purchase was $30 for a 5000 sqft bottle. But the sprayer lacked a gasket and leaked all over. I had to revert to a standard pump sprayer.

Note that lime will also combat moss. I've got a few test cases going on that. Ask me at the end of the summer what happened!

I read if I dig them out along

You should post your chiropractor's name and number.

You'll either die or you'll get very sick.

I found myself at a meeting of the Boston Micological society about 40 years ago. One of the presentations was by a lady who had been picking and identifying mushrooms for 14 years. That was the first time she had the courage to eat a wild mushroom that she had identified.

[Eggs Zachtly]

Bullshit. The OP is in the northeast. It's Spring. It's cool. It's damp.

THAT'S why they've got mushrooms.

Yup, they could do that. But it would most likely be a waste of time.

Or, wait until the weather warms up, dries out, and then no more mushrooms. Controlling mushrooms, chemically, could very well depend upon the type of mushroom, which wasn't stated. Lime isn't some kind of wonder treatment for everything.

What's your control group? What other factors in each area of your *cough* "tests" are identical? What are different? Your test results will be quite skewed without those other factors.

You should refrain from posting when you're clooless about the subject. You seem to do that quite often, you know.

Digging them out is one, very effective way, of conrolling the fungus. Patience until the cool, wet weather is over, is another. Fungicides (after first determining the species of mushroom) is yet another.

Again, bullshit. You have NO IDEA what kind of mushroom is coming up in the lawn. Very many wild mushrooms are edible. Your two scenarios are NOT the only possible results from ingesting the mushrooms in question. Or, were you trying, vainly, to be humorous? A smiley goes a long way, in text, to convey such a response.

The point of your anecdote with regards to the OP? Ahh, nothing. Same as the quality of your advice. Perhaps you should lurk more?

[Jonny]

Moisture and cool temperature.

Just leave it alone, keep it mowed. The summer sun will cause their demise.

A number of things depending on the species. Again, leave them alone.

Nature is the opposite of corporate insight. The least intrusion results with the most benefits. The more investment, the lesser the return at one point. You've definitely got to that point. The aerator turns the soil etc. With that, mixes all present foliage with it. Guess what the mushrooms are eating?

[Bob Sacamano]

Thanks everyone for all the advice.. I will just leave them alone.. I just wasn't sure if the presence of mushrooms was an indication of something else I would have to deal with..

[trader4]

Some mushrooms in a lawn are normal and nothing to worry about. They grow in cool, wet conditions. In a few more weeks, they will be gone.

Also, it sounds like you are still establishing a lawn. If you are still watering, that is a big factor. Once you take the moisture away, the mushrooms will go too.

[JerseyMike]

i too came in looking for help w/ 'shrooms. i live in ocean county,NJ and every year i have a problem w/ the mushrooms. right now i'm the only one w/ on my street w/ them and they drive me nuts. i'm not a lawn freak, i try to keep the lawn looking good, but why does it seem 'shrooms like my lawn better? i have south west exposure, so by 10:30 every day i get sun on the front of the house and it lasts all day. the front is the only place i get the mushrooms, except for the back yard near my grill and only get a few located in one spot. in the front they spread like wild fire. yesterday i had a couple of patches w/ about 12 or so 'shrooms in each patch but this morning after rain over night, those patches spread and there are about 2 dozen or more in each patch. i have very little to almost zero shade in the front and i have some new trees i planted last year on the lawn, but the mushrooms problem has been pestering me for a few seasons. if i don't water the lawn it burns very easy from the intense sune exposure in the dead of summer, but if i water regularly (about 30-45 minutes per area) the lawn looks good but the 'shrooms start to appear and if i cut back on the watering, the lawn burns. we have sandy soil beneth the top soil in our area.

the 'shrooms on my yard are whiteish in color, narrow stalk, caps that looks to be about the size of a quater. i know they are a fungus, but what will get rid of them and not damage the lawn.

any help????

mike...........