Lentinus polychrous

Name and publication

Lentinus polychrous Lév., Annis Sci. Nat., Brot., sér. 2: 175 (1844).

Description

Sold in the potpourri trade as “flower mushrooms,” the gilled sporocarps of the white rot fungus are typically peltate (umbrella-shaped), semi-peltate (funnel-shaped) or even auriculate (ear-shaped), with one side curved like a ram’s horn. Quite commonly bleached or dyed for potpourri, the native color upon drying is beige with darker gills.

Nativity and distribution

Lentinus polychrous is native from India to southeast Asia and is one of the most popular medicinal fungi in Thailand.

Family

Tricholomataceae