The paddy straw mushroom is a grey-brown, volvate mushroom with free gills that turn pink and a pink spore print. It is grown on rice straw and cotton waste in warm, humid regions of East and Southeast Asia and is the third-most-consumed mushroom worldwide. It is usually harvested at the egg stage, when it can be confused with young death caps.
Edible and widely used in Asian cooking, fresh or canned or dried. At the egg (button) stage it resembles deadly Amanita species such as the death cap; Southeast Asian immigrants in California and Australia have been poisoned by mistaking death caps for it. Wild-picked specimens must be checked for the pink spore print (death caps have white).
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 Paddy Straw Mushroom, Straw Mushroom 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.
Mycology is an evolving science: names, classifications and safety information change as research advances. Entries are compiled from cited sources and reviewed, but may be incomplete or out of date — check the sources, and never rely on this library alone to identify or eat a mushroom.
Habitat
Saprobic. Cultivated on beds of rice straw, cotton waste or other cellulosic wastes in hot, humid conditions; wild or escaped fruitings appear on woodchips, compost and in greenhouses and gardens, mostly in summer.
Distribution
Native to East and Southeast Asia, where it is widely cultivated; grown in subtropical regions with high rainfall. Introduced and apparently widespread in North America, more common east of the Great Plains.
Characteristics
Cap: 5-12 cm, conic becoming broadly convex or bell-shaped; dry, radially silky-streaked; grey to grey-brown, nearly black when young, with a paler margin. Gills: Free, close, white becoming pink then brownish pink. Stem: 6-12 cm long, 1-1.5 cm thick; whitish or brownish; no ring. Volva: Thick, sack-like, brownish grey to nearly black above, whitish below, 2-6 cm high. Spore print: Brownish pink. Spores: 7-9 x 4-5 µm, ellipsoid, smooth.
Difficulty
Intermediate
Growth speed
Fast
Substrates
Paddy (rice) straw · Cotton waste · Paddy straw and cotton waste 1:1 with 5% poultry manure
