Grass-green Russula

Appearance

The cap is flat when young, soon funnel shaped and weakly striped; somewhat sticky and shiny, pale green to light grey-green, more rarely olive green. It is often 4 to 10 cm in diameter. The closely spaced gills are pale cream when young, later becoming light yellow when the spores mature. The stipe is white, occasionally with rust-coloured spots at the base, often rather short with longitudinal furrows. It measures 5–8 cm long by 1–2 cm thick. The flesh is white, brittle and without scent, with a mild taste. ''R. aeruginea'' mushrooms are edible.

The spore print is cream-yellow. Spores are spherical to oval with ridges and warts on the surface, and measure 6–8 by 6–7 μm.

Green specimens of the crab brittlegill, ''Russula xerampelina'', can be mistaken for ''R. aeruginea''. They can be readily distinguished in that specimens of ''R. xerampelina'' always smell of cooked shellfish, while specimens of ''R. aeruginea'' do not have any distinctive odor.

Distribution

The fruit bodies of ''Russula aeruginea'' grow on the ground in woods, in troops in leaf litter or in grass. It is ectomycorrhizal with birch, but also with found under conifers, particularly pine and spruce. It is widely distributed in northern temperate zones. Fruiting occurs from July to November in Europe, and in later summer to autumn in North America. The fungus is also found in East Africa.

Habitat

The fruit bodies of ''Russula aeruginea'' grow on the ground in woods, in troops in leaf litter or in grass. It is ectomycorrhizal with birch, but also with found under conifers, particularly pine and spruce. It is widely distributed in northern temperate zones. Fruiting occurs from July to November in Europe, and in later summer to autumn in North America. The fungus is also found in East Africa.