Do you have yellow mushrooms in your potted houseplant?
I receive a lot of emails from people questioning this strange mycological manifestation that suddenly graces their plant pots. To these folks I say: you’ve just met Leucocoprinus birnbaumii, the yellow houseplant mushroom!
Leucocoprinus birnbaumii (also known as Lepiota lutea) is quite common in potted plants and greenhouses. This species is considered inedible, although the exact toxicity is unknown. So don’t eat them, no matter how candy-like they appear!
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Why Are These Mushrooms In My Pot?
This mushroom pops up as a result of contaminated potting soil or mulch. The mushroom spores infect the soil, and are widely distributed as it’s packaged and shipped. Infection can happen at any point, from a contaminated ingredient from a factory or farm to spores on the clothes of an employee.
We use the words infection and contamination here just as descriptors — it is not infectious to people or contaminated like a toxic chemical. Fungi spread through spores and mycelium, and some spread very easily through soil like this one.
Click here for more information about types of mushrooms in general.
Leucocoprinus birnbaumii Identification
Indoor identification of Leucocoprinus birnbaumii is pretty easy. If you have small yellow mushrooms growing in a potted houseplant, chances are you have this species.
That said, here are some basic facts:
- Bright to pale yellow in color throughout, including the inner flesh.
- Cap is a 1 – 2 inches tall and oval when young, becoming more bell-shaped with age. The cap is also textured with scales or dots.
- This is a gilled mushroom, although the gills do not attach to the stem.
- The stalk (or stipe) is a few inches tall and has a ring around it, although this ring often disappears with age. The ring is a remnant of the partial veil, a thin layer of tissue that protects the gills as they are developing.
- Prefers wet soil and hot weather.
- The spore print is white.
- These are saprotrophic mushrooms, meaning they feed on dead organic material. Thus they won’t hurt a living, healthy houseplant.
Know Your Yellow Mushrooms – Now What?
What do you do about these yellow mushrooms?
First off, know that they will not hurt your houseplant. They also won’t disturb you, your kids, or your pets unless they’re eaten. If there’s no danger of anyone eating them, it’s perfectly fine to just leave them where they are and enjoy their beauty.
However, there is a chance that spores from Leucocoprinus birnbaumii will travel to your other plants and infect them as well. So if you don’t want a house full of yellow mushrooms, or if you fear kids or dogs eating them, you can try one of the following to get rid of them:
- Remove the plant from the house – Either put it outside or get rid of the plant entirely. No doubt the simplest solution.
- Attempt spore removal – Pick off all visible mushrooms from their base and replace the top few inches of potting soil. This may or may not work, depending on how deeply the fungus has grown into the soil.
- Replace the soil entirely – As a last resort, you can try replacing the potting soil entirely. Remove the plant and try to get as much dirt as possible off its roots. Know that by doing this you may stress the plant, and the mushrooms could very well come back anyway.
Truthfully these mushrooms are very hard to get rid of. As the spores and mycelium (the vegetative growth of the fungus) are deeply settled in your plant pot and roots, it’s difficult to remove them entirely.
The plant should be removed if there’s a chance the mushrooms will be eaten by pets or children. Otherwise you may want to just leave them be, and enjoy the splash of color. They won’t hurt you by sitting there, and they make a great conversation piece.
I hope you’ve enjoyed learning about Leucocoprinus birnbaumii, the yellow houseplant mushroom. The next time one pops up in your plant pot, you’ll know what it is!
Darby
Question, how long do they live? On just popped up yesterday in an outside potted plant and it looks like it’s already dying. It’s shriveling up and getting smaller.
Jenny
Yeah, they won’t have a long life because there aren’t enough nutrients in the potting soil to sustain them long term. They’re just short-term guests — the best kind! :-D.
diana serb
I used neem oil on a plant. No mushrooms until the neem oil. Could that have done it?
Jenny
I’ve never heard of neem affecting mushroom growth. I don’t think that would cause it. They thrive on rich, warm soil. If you recently repotted or adding soil, that could be it.
Andrew
I used neem oil too and I didn’t notice any shrooms until then.
Jenny
Possibly the neem oil provided nutrients the mushrooms liked? I’ve never heard of this, but maybe… Or, else, the mushrooms just felt like appearing – they’re on their own schedule 🙂
Christian K
Hello, Are they dangerous f’to the house itself?
Jenny
No, they are not dangerous as long as they stay in the pot. If you have small pets or kids who are curious, you’ll want to remove them so they don’t get accidentally eaten or tossed around. If you’re worried about mushroom spores or things like that, it is very minimal and not an issue with one or two mushrooms, unless you are super sensitive to things like that.
Margie
I have these in my potted herb garden. The mushrooms are touching the herbs that I cut and use in cooking. Should I be concerned about poisoning my spaghetti sauce with the basil that comes out of this pot?
Jenny
Not at all! You have to actually eat a mushroom to get sick from it. Touching it, or having your herbs touch it, will not cause issues. Also, this mushroom isn’t deadly toxic or anything — it’s not good to eat but its not going to kill you even if you did eat it. At most, it would cause some gastrointestinal issues. If you’re worried, you can remove the mushrooms from the pot. But, honestly, won’t make a difference. Enjoy the amazing spaghetti sauce you’re going to make with fresh herbs :-D!
Lenina
I’ve had this plant since 2015!!! Two months ago I changed the pot and added more soil and two days ago I see little yellow growths, BUT TODAY THEY ARE HUGE AND I SCREAMED!!! And they are growing as I am looking at them, it’s FREAKY. They are quite alien like!!!! So to the internet I came.
Jenny
Hahah! Yes, they grow very quickly, too! There’s nothing to worry about though unless you have kids or pets who might try to eat them. They’ll die back just as quickly as they appeared. It means you have good nutritious soil :-). The spores probably came in with the new potting soil you added.
dariushrg
Hello. I have a terrarium where there is cold steam and white mushrooms have grown around the steam hitting the soil. Now today I saw that a yellow mushroom has also grown in it. Are these mushrooms harmful?
Jenny
Nope, they aren’t harmful. Just a sign that your terrarium is healthy with lots of good soil nutrients available. They won’t last long, so enjoy their bright splash of color while they’re there :-).
Joyce
Well i feel a little better knowing someone else freaked out over how fast that beautiful little eraser-size “thing” grew. Yesterday it was a dot today it is almost 2″ tall. I held back my scream but do agree they are very alien looking. I am happy to know what they are.
Jenny
HA! Yes, it’s a wee bit unnerving how fast they appear and grow!
Barbara Mantiera
I have some growing with my potted peppers and spices on my terrace. Will they poison the peppers or spices? I wouldn’t want to poison anyone if they ate the vegetables or spices.
Jenny
No, mushrooms are only poisonous if eaten. Being in proximity isn’t an issue at all, rest assured. Plus, this species isn’t poisonous 🙂
Barbara Mantiera
Thank you!
allyne z cheifet
I have pale yellow mushrooms with brown spots on the edges growing in my lemon plant pot.. It is a pale yellow underneath too.
Jenny
It is most likely this mushroom but older/mature/dying out. Usually the spots on the cap are pale yellow but they can be a different color especially if they’re dried out.
Pinkfluffypancake
I just found 5 of these alien heads in my lemon plant, and was horrified I’ve had this lemon plant from a seed 5years old now, I have never seen anything so weird.
Jenny
Haha! Aren’t they wild. So unnerving how fast they appear too. Not to worry though! They’re harmless. Spores probably were in a soil mix you used and were just waiting for just the right time to freak you out 🙂
Sheila Mays
Jenny. I have a bunch of Christmas and Thanksgiving cactus I have had for years. I decided to buy some cactus food never feed before and now I have those yellow mushrooms coming up since they were feed
Jenny
I would guess the new nutrient influx (cactus food) gave the mushrooms the boost they needed to fruit. The mycelium had probably been there already. As you’ve read, there’s no harm
Kimberly
I think I have this mushroom in a jade plant but they’re not capped like the picture, they’ve opened like an umbrella. Are they the same?
Jenny
Yes, as the mushrooms age, the caps open up more. That’s usually a sign it’s on it’s way out :-). But, it will drop spores (mushie seeds) before it dies, so if you don’t want them reappearing, it’s a good idea to remove the mushroom as soon as you see it.
Tara
I heads the spice cinammon os helpful to prevent or treat this .. any truth you’ve heard?
Jenny
I haven’t heard this, but it might work to keep the mushrooms from popping up. I don’t think it will kill the mycelium in the soil, though (the mushrooms “roots”). I know cinnamon is used as a fungicide, but that is more for small fungal pathogens, not bigger mycelium/fruiting mushroom bodies. If you try it, please let us know!
Alice
Can you just wait it out and see if they die? They’ve grown in one of my succulents so I can just stop watering it for a while
Jenny
Absolutely! They actually have a pretty short lifespan so won’t be there long. However, if you let it go to full maturity, it will release its spores and could lead to more growths later on. They’re not harmful, so it’s fine either way from that standpoint. But, if you don’t like having them there, you should pick it before it matures and releases spores to (hopefully) prevent future fruitings.
havier Dejesus
Jenny thanks for the great read… I am doing my first cannabis grow and my plant is currently 2 months old and in flowering stage. I go and look at my soil and I saw all the growth’s all over it! Must be this mushroom thanks!
Jenny
Glad to help! And, happy growing :-D!
beq
First one last week, then six this weekend, now there are eight of them. They come and go fast and they look like what you picture and describe except that they have a little cap of darker yellow on top when they emerge. They’re in a pot on my porch with my 4 foot dwarf Deodar Cedar. The tree and the pot have been there for several years but these are the first toadstools. Thank you for the information!
Jenny
Glad the article helped. These are always quite astounding when they show up lol!
Linya Moy
Can it appear in a houseplant overnight? Freaked me out! Plant is indoors, not near window, and not recently repotted!!
Jenny
Hah! Yes they can. Super freaky when that happens. It could be the spores were in the new potting soil …
Alec
I know that they can be caused from dead leaves, a lot of moisture and heat but does soil that’s high in nitrogen often cause mushrooms more than normal soil?
Jenny
Mushrooms do need nitrogen to grow, but I don’t think it has a huge impact. My understanding is that nitrogen also accelerates organic breakdown, which in turn will give the mushrooms more nutrients to feed on
DG
Funny, my soil is not fresh, and I don’t water it often as it’s with my snake plant. I figured after 2 years of having the plant, the soil will be fairly deleted. Unless maybe it’s the fertilizer that I poured in there, on the rare occasion about a month ago?
Jenny
That could be it — maybe the spores were just waiting for enough nutrients? Mushrooms are opportunistic beasts 🙂
LaToya
I’m super freaked out!!! I noticed two small yellow dots in my 3 year old pothos this morning at 858am went to work and came in at 1026pm and had two massive yellow mushrooms with full caps. I can’t believe how fast they grew! I have the heebie-jeebies every-time I think about them!!!! Thank you for this article it was very informative!
Jenny
Hahaha! These in particular are SO creepy how fast they appear. You are definitely not the first to be totally freaked out!!
Storm
I had one grow in my avocado tree’s pot, the stem shriveled and the top remained. This post helped me identify and appreciate the little mushrooms, I found them adorable. My mom said the dried up part could release something that messes with your vision but I am unsure on what she is talking about. That has made me worried or is that only common for certain mushrooms in the wild?
Jenny
Excess spores can affect your lungs (from any mushroom), but its unlikely a few of these little mushies would do that — that’s more an issue mushroom farmers encounter. I’m not sure what your mother is referring to either, unless she thinks you’re eating them and that they’re hallucinogenic??
Elizabeth
Hello, we just had some heavy, windy rains over the last couple of weeks and today four of these mushrooms popped up around our olive tree and one next to the neighboring pomegranate tree. We removed them and the soil under them right after noticing those funny looking yellow asparagus lookalikes.
Neither tree is potted and both are over ten years old and their soil had never sprouted any fungi. Living in Baja, outside of hurricane season the weather is usually warm and rather dry. Was wondering if the winds from a recent hurricane could have brought them in from somewhere else.
I hope they don’t re-sprout. One of my dogs loves to sample anything new in the back garden.
Jenny
The rains definitely could have brought in the spores – that’s the most likely cause. But also, sometimes fungi just hang out dormant for a very long time until they feel like fruiting. Oftentimes, stress causes them to fruit, which a storm may cause. It’s totally possible they will reappear, but on the plus side, they’ll show up in the same location, so at least you’ll know where to look. Also, they have very short lifespans, just a few day and they start to rot. Dogs, SIGH, why do they have to but everything in their mouths?!?
Amanda
Found some in my tortoise enclosure. Removed them and changed out the substrate (because I didn’t want to risk it), but was wondering 1) if they would be detrimental to a tortoise, if eaten? 2) would they be detrimental in a worm bin? I usually compost the substrate, but have recently started a worm bin.
Jenny
It all depends on the type of mushroom. There is no overarching rule, everything is species specific. If you’d like to post pics of the mushrooms on our facebook group, we can try to identify it and then you can know whether it’s problematic for a tortoise.
paul hayworth
super phosphate kill’s them
Jenny
sulfur? That’s nice, but there is no need to kill them. They’re not doing any harm and are a sign of healthy soil. If there is any concern that pets or kids will eat them, you can just pick them and remove them from the soil.