Honey fungus

Honey fungus is known as edible when thoroughly cooked. Raw or undercooked it causes stomach upsets, and even well cooked it disagrees with some people. Never eat it without an expert's identification.

The most dangerous look-alike is the funeral bell (Galerina marginata), which is smaller with a rusty-brown spore print. Sulphur tuft (Hypholoma fasciculare) also grows in clusters but has no ring and tastes very bitter.

At the base of trees and on stumps, especially in the Marmara and Black Sea forests. Most GBIF records come from İstanbul's northern forests, with others in Bolu, Düzce and Yalova.

In autumn, after the first rains, from late September to December. Turkish records cluster between October and January.

Yes. Honey fungus is a root-rot parasite that spreads through soil with black strands called rhizomorphs and can kill weakened trees; a KTÜ study examined its damage in spruce forests.

White. If a similar-looking cluster gives a rusty-brown print it may be deadly Galerina, and none of it should be eaten.

The ringless honey mushroom (Desarmillaria tabescens, formerly Armillaria tabescens) looks like honey fungus but has no ring on the stem. It grows in clusters on wood and roots of oaks and other trees. Like honey fungus, it is eaten only well cooked, and deadly Galerina is a look-alike.

Yes. Honey fungus and honey mushroom are both names for Armillaria mellea and its close relatives, called bal mantarı in Turkish.

Honey fungus grows in dense clusters on stumps, roots and the base of trees. The caps are honey-yellow to brown with small dark scales near the centre, the gills are white to cream and the stem has a whitish ring. Black, bootlace-like strands often run under the bark.

We look for clusters on wood, a white spore print, a ring on the stem and the black bootlace strands. Deadly galerina and sulphur tuft also grow in clusters on wood, so every find is checked carefully before cooking.

There is no reliable home chemical cure. Gardeners remove the infected stump and as many roots as possible, and choose more resistant plants for that spot.

Both are brown and grow on wood, but the deadly galerina is smaller, with a thin stem and a rusty-brown spore print, while honey fungus grows in larger clusters and leaves a white spore print. We take a spore print every time.

A single honey fungus (Armillaria ostoyae) in Oregon, USA, spreads underground over several square kilometres and is often called one of the largest living organisms. Most of it is hidden as root-like strands in the soil.

Honey fungus spreads underground with black, bootlace-like strands called rhizomorphs. They grow from infected stumps and roots to the roots of nearby trees and shrubs, and the mushrooms appear in clusters at the base of trees or on stumps in autumn.

Honey fungus is not deadly, but eaten raw or undercooked it often causes stomach upsets, and some people react even when it is well cooked. We only eat young caps, cook them thoroughly and try a small amount the first time. The real danger is mistaking the deadly galerina or sulphur tuft for honey fungus.

In our calendar, honey fungus season runs Sep–Jan. Honey fungus fruits in autumn after the first rains, from late September to December; Turkish GBIF records cluster between October and January.

Honey fungus grows on the roots and trunk bases of broadleaf trees, less often conifers, and on stumps; it spreads through the soil with black, bootlace-like strands called rhizomorphs.

In Turkey, honey fungus records come mostly from the northern forests of İstanbul, with others from Bolu, Düzce and Yalova. A Karadeniz Technical University study examined Armillaria mellea and its damage in the spruce forests of the Black Sea region.

Honey fungus can be confused with funeral bell (Galerina marginata, deadly), sulphur tuft (Hypholoma fasciculare, poisonous) and ringless honey fungus (Armillaria tabescens, edible species). Look-alikes are compared on this page.

In Turkish, honey fungus (Armillaria mellea) is called Bal mantarı; other local names include bal rengi mantar.