Leif said:
Around the base of the fungus you can see a creeping plant with long narrow leaves arranged radially about a stem. Does anyone know what the plant is? It seems to have its own flora of Cortinarius fungi. The location is Christmas Common though I have seen it elsewhere, also with mychorrizal Cortinarius with no nearby trees. Thanks.
Hi Leif, the plant is Common Rock-rose,
Helianthemum nummularium (=
H. chamaecistus).
As you will have read in Field Mycology, there are a number of ectomycorrhizal fungi associated with it. In fact there are some Scottish sites a friend and I have known for several years with such fungi and a we had been building up a rather longer list, with various notable
Amanita,
Russula, etc. species when, slightly to my annoyance, the first report from elsewhere appeared in print!
We have a very distinct-looking but unnamed
Cortinarius with a coppery-brown cap, an unnamed
Hebeloma allied to
H. hiemalis and other such mysteries.
It seems that
Helianthemum can pick up normally birch mycorrhizal species (after birch has been cleared?) and evidently you have another there. What are you calling your
Amanita?
A. submembranacea?
What would be interesting, I think, would be for anyone suitably placed to check out our other British
Helianthemum species -
H. apenninum on limestone in S.W. England and
H. oelandicum (
H. canum) in scattered limestone localities. No reports of mycorrhizal fungi yet, as far as I know, but I bet they have them.