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Chlorine Amanita

Amanita chlorinosma (am-ah-NEE-tah klor-in-OS-mah)

Family: Amanitaceae Unknown

Chlorine lepidella is a poisonous mushroom in the fungus family (Amanitaceae) native to the eastern USA with a large population in the Piedmont and coastal plains of North Carolina. It can be found growing singly in landscapes, natural settings, or forests more frequently under oak than pine trees. This mushroom grows up to 5 inches tall and often has a portion of the stem underground. It prefers shady locations and appears in summer and fall. The cap is very large, up to 10 inches in diameter, whitish, covered with dense, soft, powdery scales that may wash off easily in rain. The gills are close, whitish, with cottony edges. The stalk is greatly enlarged below, often with the lower 1/3 buried in soil, and whitish. The annulus (ring) is fragile, whitish, and often left on edge of caps with no tissue in the stalk. The spore print is white with a strong chlorine odor. Do not plant or eat. Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: No significant problems

Source: NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox ↗ NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox, 36 attributes.

Companions & Conflicts

Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.

No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.

Also noted by NC State

Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.

Full plant profile

Growing Conditions
Plant type
Mushroom; Poisonous
Life cycle
Perennial
Light
Deep shade (Less than 2 hours to no direct sunlight)
NC region
Coastal; Piedmont
Growth rate
Rapid
Maintenance
High
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Columnar; Erect
Texture
Medium
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
No true leaves. The cap is up to 10 inches across and whitish, covered with dense, soft, powdery scales that may wash off easily in rain. The gills are close, whitish, with cottony edges.
Flower detail
No flowers
Fruit detail
Reproduces by spores that are white, smooth, ellipsoid and amyloid.
Stem color
White
Stem detail
The stem is up to 4.5" tall. The lower 1/3 of the stem narrows until reaching the upper 2/3, remains equal in width.
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Unknown
Origin
USA, NC
Play value
Shade; Textural
Food & Medicine

Edibility

NOT EDIBLE!

Landscape Use
Garden tags
#poisonous #forest mushroom #mushrooms #poisonous mushrooms #understory planting #malodorous #native mushroom
Problems & Resistance
Problems
Poisonous to Humans
Poison severity
High
Poison parts
Stems
Poison symptoms
May be fatal if eaten. Poisonous through ingestion (Poisonous part: all). Symptoms: Strongly suspected to be toxic; little has been documented on this specific species but it is expected to produce symptoms similar to other Amanita species: nausea, vomiting, dizziness, abdominal pains, etc. Symptoms occur 30 minutes to several hours after ingesting.
Toxic principle
amatoxin
Contact dermatitis
No
Toxicity summary
High severity poison; parts: Stems

Planted at Hunnicutt

Nobody’s planted this one yet.