Green-spored Parasol
The green-spored parasol is the single most common cause of mushroom poisoning in North America, precisely because it grows on well-kept summer lawns where people notice it and because it looks so much like several edible parasols. It is a large, handsome mushroom: a broad whitish cap up to 8–12 inches across, scaly toward the centre, on a tall stem with a ring, frequently appearing in fairy rings across the grass after warm rain.
The decisive feature is the spore print, which is dull green — unique among the big lawn parasols, whose spores are white. Mature gills also take on a greenish or grey-green cast rather than staying white. It causes severe, sometimes dramatic, gastrointestinal illness. Because it grows in the same lawns as edible parasols and the shaggy mane, the rule for a gardener is simple: a large lawn parasol with any green tint to the mature gills, or a green spore print, is this species and must be left alone.
Toxic
The most common cause of mushroom poisoning in North America, causing severe vomiting and diarrhoea. Mimics the edible parasols and shaggy parasols that share the same lawns. The distinguishing feature is a dull-green spore print and greenish mature gills, versus the white spore print and white gills of the edible parasols; the shaggy mane, by contrast, dissolves into black ink.
Shaggy mane (Coprinus comatus), Edible and shaggy parasols (Macrolepiota and Chlorophyllum rhacodes)
Decomposes organic matter in enriched turf, recycling nutrients through lawn soil. Ecologically harmless to the garden — the hazard is entirely to people and pets who mistake it for an edible parasol.
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