Honey Fungus - Armillaria mellea

5 to 15 cm in diameter; colour ranging from honey-yellow to red-brown, with a darker area near the centre. The cap flesh is white and firm. Initially deeply convex, the caps flatten and often develop wavy, striated margins. Fine scales cover the young caps, most noticeably towards the centre, but not always remaining evident as the caps reach maturity. When young, the stems are white, turning yellow or yellowish-brown and finely woolly as the fruitbody matures. The fungus lives between the bark and sapwood, usually of deciduous trees, and can be seen as black strands on dead fallen trunks where the bark has come away.  Such strands are known as “bootlaces” - see photograph.

On or up against broad-leaf and conifer trees; also occurring on stumps and roots, and occasionally on fallen branches.

July to November

Parasitic and a threat to trees.

Common and widespread in Britain.

Very common in Leicestershire and Rutland.