mushrooms - from www.home-gardening-tips.com/.../ As a gardener, you must have across with several types of mushrooms, the fungi. You might have seen the real tiny one like Mycenae or the giant one like Phlebopus Marginatus. Irrespective of their sizes, all the mushrooms are fungi. Botanists (Mycologists) have been studying plants for several centuries but the knowledge of fungi is almost a century old concept only. Fungi behind the plants like ‘eucalypts’ and ‘wattles’ have helped immensely in this research. Scientists across the world are still studying and discovering new species of fungi in order to understand their characteristics. Fungi have various varieties. Based on several properties fungi are named and classified botanically. Generally, fungi are very small and you will have to make an extra effort while passing through any densely vegetated area to spot fungi. Fungi have an important role to play in our ecosystem. It helps in recycling the nutrients. Fungi do so by breaking down the dead plant materials. In this respect, there exists a symbiotic inter-relationship between the plants and fungi. Most of the plants that you see in gardens today are greatly dependent on fungi for deriving their own nutritional contents. In simpler words, you may say that plants and the fungus swap nutrients. “Gymnopylus Pampeanus” is a typical mushroom that generally grows at the tree-base. Sometimes you may also find it developing near the trunk also. These varieties of mushrooms have gills underneath and they reproduce spores of different colours. These multi-coloured spores are extremely useful indicators while identifying the different varieties of fungi. “Inky Caps” are real amazing type of fungi. In gardens and along the roadside edges these fungi grow easily. A fungus digests itself. Self-digestion process in these fungi generally begins gradually at the top edge of its cap. Digestion process is not finished until it remains as a black inky mass at the end. These “Inky Cap” fungi were extensively used in printing banknotes during earlier years of printing. Spores of these fungi were added to the ink in order to prevent ant counterfeiting. When a currency note was observed under a microscope, the spores from inky caps were clearly visible. Several other varieties of fungi grow commonly in the gardens, parks, and nearby areas. Many of them also grow on supportive mediums like wood and other objects. Callybia, a chocolate brown coloured fungi and Mycenae Clarkeana are mushrooms with lilac tint and little fringe at the caps. You might have seen in your garden, the Trichlomopsis mushroom with bright yellow gills. These all varieties of mushroom are known as Hypha. These fungi generally grow on wood and easily break down and become powder. This is how nature recycles its own creations. “Fly Agaric” (Amanita Muscaria) is another distinctive fungus with its luceous red caps and white spots. In children’s storybooks, you must have seen this fungus in many fairytales. The most commonly found fungi among the gardens the world over one. It grows easily with pines and birches. “Hebeloma”, one more variety of fungi has brown coloured gills and slim cap. It is also known as the “poison pie” popularly. The popular name of this fungi itself notifies that it is not an edible variety. Several types of wild fungi also grow in many parts of the world and knowledge about their edibility is still very limited. Scientists (Mycologists) are busy making lists of such edible and non-edible, and toxic fungi and their work is not finished yet. So if you observe a wild-fungi be extra cautious as it could be poisonous also. The “Death Cap” is a common name given to a special variety of fungi, the Amanita Phalloids. This fungus generally grows with oak-trees. Its white gills and a differently looking cap with yellowish or greenish colour characterize it. At the base of the stem colour of the cap becomes white. As the name denotes, this is an extremely poisonous fungi. Another such dangerously poisonous mushroom is yellow stainer Agaricus Xanthodermus. This mushroom is very similar in appearance with those you buy from markets for edible purposes. You will observe pink grills underneath this mushroom cap. You will also find a little skirt or a ring on its stem. If you rub the cap in hands you will find a yellow stain developed and this makes it different from any typical field -mushroom. This mushroom has a typical chemical smell. One of the most worrying aspects of this mushroom is its abundance in gardens, parks, and other city spaces. Because of its similar appearances, it is very commonly grown in the fields also. You need to be very cautious and extra careful while using such mushrooms.