Hebeloma is a large and confusing genus--and one that is imperfectly documented and described in North America--but Hebeloma sinapizans is fairly easily distinguished. It bears a close resemblance to many Cortinarius species, but it lacks the cortina that characterizes mushrooms in that genus. Look for the thick, shaggy stem, which usually features areas of white scales that catch falling spores when the mushroom matures and thus appear brownish; the sticky, brownish to reddish brown cap; and the pale gills, which become brownish or cinnamon brown and often begin to erode along the edges. Other useful identification features include the radishlike smell of the crushed flesh, and the tendency to grow in grassy areas at woods' edges.

Hebeloma sinapizans is decidedly poisonous, causing various types of gastrointestinal distress. Do not eat it, or anything that looks like it!

Description:

Ecology: Mycorrhizal with hardwoods or conifers; growing gregariously or in loose clusters, sometimes in arcs or fairy rings, in grassy areas at woods' edges or in woods; late summer and fall (winter and spring in California); widely distributed in North America.

Cap: 4-15 cm; convex or broadly convex, becoming plane; sticky; smooth; with a soft, cottony margin, at least when young; often with a whitish sheen when young; cinnamon tan to darker reddish brown.

Gills: Attached to the stem, often by a notch; close; pale clay color when young, becoming cinnamon brown to brown; sometimes with beads of liquid when young and fresh; the edges often becoming ragged as the mushroom matures.

Stem: 4-13 cm long; 1-3 cm thick; more or less equal above, but with a fairly abrupt swollen base; finely hairy or dusty near the apex; developing scales below, often in more or less concentric bands; whitish, but the scales often capturing spores as the mushroom matures and thus becoming brownish; without a cortina or a ring zone.

Flesh: Whitish; thick.

Taste: Beginners should not taste this mushroom; it is poisonous. However, the taste is radishlike, as is the odor of the crushed flesh--and the odor alone will serve to verify the taste.

Spore Print: Brown to pinkish brown.