A fairly large, dark gray-brown woodwax of conifer forests, with a streaked, slightly tacky cap and whitish, decurrent waxy gills. The stem is paler than the cap, grayish to beige or nearly white. It is regarded as a good edible in northern Europe.
Edible (Wikipedia; rated highly by Svampguiden in the Nordic countries). Look-alikes: Grayish Tricholoma species, including the toxic T. pardinum (GI irritant), have notched rather than decurrent gills, and Entoloma species such as the poisonous E. sinuatum have notched gills that turn pinkish and a pink spore print; check for waxy, decurrent gills and a white spore print.
Help build this page
This page grows with the community. Here is what it is still missing:
Photos. None yet — moderators review each photo before it appears.Sign in to add a photo
Sightings. Spotted it in the wild? Add it to the map.Open the map
Strains. No public strains of this species on WeMush yet.
Track Your Own Arched Woodwax Grows
Join WeMush to log cultivation data, discover strains, and connect with fellow growers.
Never eat a wild mushroom based on a web page — confirm with an expert.
Habitat
Ectomycorrhizal; on the ground in coniferous forests under pine, spruce and hemlock, in late summer and fall.
Distribution
Widespread in the Northern Hemisphere. In North America, herbarium records come from Alaska, British Columbia, Idaho, Oregon and Washington, and it is included in Great Lakes regional data; also in northern and central Europe.
Characteristics
Cap: 3-10 cm (to about 12 cm), convex or umbonate with an inrolled margin, becoming flat or broadly convex; blackish brown to gray-brown or tan, with radiating dark streaks (virgate), tacky when moist. Gills: whitish, adnate to subdecurrent, waxy. Stem: 2-10 cm long, 1-3 cm thick, grayish to beige or whitish, paler than the cap. Odor: faint, sometimes described as coal-tar-like. Spore print: white. Spores: 7-9 x 4-5 um (Great Lakes Mushroom Data).
