Barry Green
About
Porcelain fungus is specific to beech wood. It appears in late summer until late autumn on dead trunks and fallen branches and occasionally it grows on dead branches high up in living trees. It is also named the poached egg fungus or slimy beech cap.
How to identify
The caps measure 2-8cm in diameter and are white and very shiny. The caps are convex then flattening, pale greyish when young but becoming whiter with age. The caps are also semi-translucent and slimy. The stem is 5-8cm high, tapering slightly downwards. Gills are white, then yellowish, broad and widely spaced.
Where to find it
On trunks and branches of beech trees. They are often found high up and in clusters.
Habitats
When to find it
- July
- August
- September
- October
How can people help
The primary factor affecting the dead wood habitat is lack of appreciation of its importance by decision makers, woodland managers and workers and the general public. Mature and ageing trees are often felled and removed and fallen dead wood cleared away, without understanding of the magnitude of the impact that this has on the wildlife in the area. By keeping dead wood you encourage species of fungi, such as porcelain fungus, especially those which are dependent on one species of tree.