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Shaggy Parasol

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Shaggy Parasol

Edible

Autumn

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Shaggy Parasol, Chlorophyllum rhacodes

An edible Parasol look-a-like that can cause gastric upsets in some people.

Mushroom Type
Common Names	Shaggy Parasol (EN), Parasol Cennog (CY), Czubajka Czerwieniejąca (PL), Piruló Őzlábgomba (HU)
Scientific Name	Chlorophyllum rhacodes
Synonyms	Macrolepiota rhacodes, Lepiota procera var. rhacodes
Season Start	Jul
Season End	Nov
Average Mushroom height (CM)	10-20
Average Cap width (CM)	10-20

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Please note that each and every mushroom you come across may vary in appearance to these photos.

Cap

10-20 cm. Starting ovate, smooth and pale brown/pink opening to flat with shaggy brown scales on a white background, usually with a smooth umbo.

Gills

Gills crowded and free of the stem. White when young turning pale tan/pink bruising red/orange.

Stem

10-20 cm long, 1-1.5 cm diameter. White to pale pink/brown. Smooth and plain with a double edged ring. Bulbous at the bottom.

Skirt

Has a double edged skirt that can become unattached and moved up and down the stem. Darker on the underside.

Bulbous Base

Has a bulbous base that is not as large and is not marginate like the Brown Parasol.

Flesh

White bruising orange/red when cut.

Habitat

Mixed woodland and anywhere shady particularly with conifers. Grows in troops or rings but can be found individually.

Possible Confusion

When young this mushroom looks similar to some of the deadly Amanitas, due to the fact it has a bulbous base, but there is no sac-like structure (volva), and can have a similar looking cap. The confusion with dapperlings (Lepiota spp.) which are smaller can be ignored if the mushroom cap is over twelve centimetres in diameter, when mature nothing that looks similar is anywhere near as big apart from the Parasol mushroom (Macrolepiota procera), pictured and the Brown Parasol (Chlorophyllum brunneum).
The Parasol has a snakeskin like dark brown pattern on the stem, the Shaggy Parasol has a smooth off white stem.
The brown Parasol has a large, bulbous, marginate base, the Shaggy Parasol has a bulbous base but is not as large and is not marginate.

Spore Print

White. Ellipsoid, dextrinoid. You should scrape your spores into a small pile to get an accurate spore colour.

Taste / Smell

Good but must be cooked. Can cause gastric upsets in some people.

Frequency

Common.

Other Facts

Shaggy Parasols can cause gastric upsets in some people, if you are trying some for the first time, cook well and only try a small amount, wait 24 hours to see if there is a reaction.
The epithet (2nd part of the scientific name) as ‘rachodes’ was a misspelling of the Greek rhakos or rhacos which means ‘piece of cloth’.

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32 responses to “Shaggy Parasol”

peter wolffe

November 18, 2018

dear madam/sir. i love to pick mushrooms, my partner hood winked into eating them lol, now ive got the bug to look and try, now living in colchester theres no funge club, i use your web site and a book i have many thanks for your web ive been looking for the beef stack found it then some person cut it all down now beef stack. pete.

Nancy Dickson

November 22, 2018

After a few days in the fridge our big shaggy mushroom doesn’t turn red when cut or bruised. The diameter is now 15 centimeters across.

Is this ok ? Is there anything similar that is dangerous to eat? There doesn’t seem to be anything similar that is dangerous.
Thanks!

1. Poppy Ives
  
  February 27, 2019
  
  They can share similarities with some Amanitas, particularly the Warted Amanita, Amanita strobiliformis which is not advisable to eat.
  
Robert Johnson

June 20, 2019

Found my first shaggy parasol of the year in a bit of a copse by a busy thoroughfare. Haven’t tried eating them yet but I was surprised to see them in June but given the weather we have had it feels like autumn some days.

alexis z

June 25, 2019

my lord.

just found and fried a couple of caps.

taste just like sirloin steak.

yum.

Peter Cliff

August 28, 2019

hi.got a cluster of shaggy parasols growing at bottom of my garden in shade near a tree,First time in about 18 years nice surprise,I am seventy now and used to love collecting edible fungi in my early twenties but never tried shaggy Ive just fried a small piece to be on the safe side hopefully I am right and will enjoy the rest if I am,Peter

1. Zoe
  
  October 16, 2019
  
  How did you get on Peter? I’ve just found a load in my garden and am about to experiment on the family. 😉
  
Lynn Armstrong

October 10, 2019

I have some of these growing in my garden by some fir trees. If it says they are unedible on here, why are people eating them? Are there different types? Mine are exactly like the photos with very pale undersides. I am a first time mushroom picker. I’ve become interested as I have all kinds popping up in the garden. Many thanks.

1. Eric Biggane
  
  December 18, 2019
  
  Hi Lynn, we don’t recommend the Shaggy Parasol as it can make about 1 in 25 people suffer from gastric upsets. It doesn’t affect everyone and if you are lucky enough to be able to eat them, they are a tasty mushroom. The only way to find out if you can’t eat them is to try them in a very small amount cooked and work up from there.
  
Bob

October 17, 2019

You sure says shaggy parasols are chlorophyllum Rhacodes, but they are macrolepiota rhacodes. Just letting you know about a typo!!

1. Poppy Ives
  
  November 25, 2019
  
  Hi Bob
  As with many other mushrooms their scientific name has recently been changed, they are no longer Macrolepiota.
  
Colin Gore

October 22, 2019

just visited our local green area, and noticed some mushrooms that i could not identify. now have and they look like shaggy parasol mushrooms,which i am about to harvest! how long do they keep in the fridge?

1. Eric Biggane
  
  December 18, 2019
  
  Hi Colin, most mushrooms will last for two to three days in the fridge but it very much depends on the condition they were in when you picked them. Cooking then freezing or drying are the best ways to make your mushrooms last.
  
Elliot Walker

October 27, 2019

Hi there. So I can eat these with no issue and feel pretty confident with the ID but I know there is a rare mushroom, the Lepiota brunneoincarnata, or deadly dapperling which looks similar. Am I correct in thinking that the Lepiota brunneoincarnata does NOT have a skirt and that is a good way to differentiate it from the shaggy and large parasol??
Many thanks for info

1. Eric Biggane
  
  December 18, 2019
  
  Hi Elliot, it does have a skirt, like the Shaggy Parasol. The Lepiota has brilliant white gills and it’s flesh does not bruise orange/pink unlike the off white gills and staining of the Shaggy Parasol.
  
Edward F Wicke

November 2, 2019

I picked a lot these in mid-Hampshire and loved the taste. I found them to taste similar to the parasol mushrooms, but meatier. In good years we froze batches of these; they could be cooked from frozen and were then a little soggy but still good!

Chris Yeamans

November 2, 2019

Hi there, just picked one of these in our nearby wood today. i was wondering why it’s listed as inedible, but then later on you say it is edible (with obvious provisos)
thanks
great website and videos by the way

Nicky Williamson

November 3, 2019

Hi, did your course with Fabrio last week, which was fantastic. I found a group of mushrooms at the bottom of my garden in an old compost type area. It looks like a shaggy parasol, but does not turn orange when bruised or cut, but has a smooth white stem, not a snake skin stem. Cap size is about 12 cm. Is there anything else it could be?

1. Eric Biggane
  
  December 18, 2019
  
  Hi Nicky, if you have any photos of the stem, gills and cap I’ll try to ID them for you, I really can’t from just a description.
  
Dave Oshana

September 18, 2020

Has anyone been advised to “pre-boil before cooking”? One Finnish mushroom book recommends boiling *before* cooking “Akansieni”, which it classifies as Chlorophyllum Olivieri, whilst a second book classifies as Chlorophyllum Rhacodes. In contrast, English websites and videos advise simply chopping the raw mushroom before frying it. One website even advises against using excessive water when cleaning the Shaggy Parasol, in case the meaty taste is washed away.

1. Eric Biggane
  
  September 21, 2020
  
  Shaggy Parasols need to be cooked well to be edible so a long fry is necessary and although I have heard about boiling them first, I think it would spoil the texture and taste a bit. Even boiled and cooked well, this mushroom can cause gastric upsets in some people.
  
Chris Machin

November 19, 2020

I have found a parasol that meets all the criteria of a shaggy variety but it has a 21cm diameter cap, i’m either lucky to have found a large specimen or perhaps it’s another variety? Any thoughts or other peoples experiences with a larger find would be appreciated, cheers!

Mara

September 17, 2021

Don’t! I repeat Don’t! eat this mushroom. They popped up next to our house for the first time ever this fall. Dad cooked them up. All four of us have been SEVERELY ill. We only have 2 bathrooms in the house to make matters worse… STAY AWAY FROM SHAGGY PARASOL.

Mary

October 10, 2021

Hello. I just found a load of these on a rough common with lots of sunlight. As it says that they grow in woods, could I have mistaken them for something else? They are the size of a side plate!

1. Eric Biggane
  
  November 3, 2021
  
  Mushrooms don’t always stick to their environment and can often be found where they shouldn’t be growing. I find Shaggy Parasols in fields sometimes.
  
Robert Malcolm Kay

October 15, 2021

tasty, nice breakfast mushroom: if not ‘buggy’.

Jan Bartholomew

September 7, 2022

I’ve eaten lots of shaggy parasols with no stomach upset whatsoever – lucky me. The most numerous were growing around the composting stump of a felled ash tree in the middle of an open Somerset cattle meadow 800 feet above sea level. Before the tree was felled, they were not there. They were positively identified from three different sources. I have been eating various wild mushrooms since I was a child, taught to identify them by my all-knowing grandmother. I also use two different seriously detailed reference books and if in the slightest doubt, err on the side of caution and don’t eat them. Never had an upset tummy. I pay particular attention to gill structure, frill, stem details, smell and more. The most delicious mushroom I’ve ever eaten was also a parasol (many of them to be honest), growing a foot tall, with a cap 10 inches across, a snakeskin pattern on the stem and in a fairy ring about 30 feet across, again in upland Somerset, for several years. There were always around a dozen in the fairy ring. What a stunner, best heated intact for 1 minute in butter and a pinch of salt but nothing else – the delicate flavour must be preserved. Heavenly.

1. Soph Roberts
  
  September 17, 2022
  
  Interesting, wish I had had a grandmother like yours! I have some splendid specimens growing in my garden, but without any confirmation from anyone else, I don’t dare eat them! Out of pure interest if they are harvested one year, does that affect how many are left for next year?
  
  1. Attila Fodi
    
    September 22, 2022
    
    Hi, Soph,
    As long as you don’t destroy the habitat you can pick as many mushrooms (fruit bodies) as you want (IF the species itself is not under legal protection or isn’t considered as Class A drug). Mushrooms are the “fruits” of a much larger organism, the mycelium of the very same species which is hidden within the substrate (grows under the soil, or within a tree or any other hosts). Picking mushrooms is like picking cherries from a cherry tree, it won’t do any harm to the tree itself, so no worries.
    
Kirsty

November 12, 2022

I’ve eaten parasols before & found them a bit insubstantial but found my first shaggy (checked ID with others, looked & smelt right, gills bruised reddish on touch etc) & have fried a small piece in butter & eaten it today, I really hope I can tolerate it as it was absolutely bloomin’ delicious & meatier than ordinary parasols!

Stephen Paxton

November 14, 2023

Hi – this is might be worth updating to reflect the 3 different species of chlorophyllum in the uk (brunneum, rhacodes, olivieri). There’sa nice summary here: https://www.svims.ca/council/Chloro.htm.

All anecdotal but brunneum seems to be the one that’s most suspect

Susannah

October 18, 2024

These have been happily establishing in my polytunnel, which was started four years ago with layers of dung, wool, cardboard and then commercial compost. The mycelium has spread right through the growing beds, and mushrooms have been popping up this year. Was wary until thoroughly checked, but this family are enjoying them well cooked. Have never seen them in the locality before. The plants seem to be enjoying the company – cabbages, strawberries, cucumbers, melons etc all grow well.