A mysterious fungus sprung up in one of our flowerpots this weekend. It looked creepy and beautiful and smelled terrible. What could it be?
Turns out it’s a Stinkhorn, a Columned Stinkhorn, to be exact: Clathrus columnatus. A tip of the hat to Lisa Mulvey for the quick ID.
If vibrant colors are an indication of poisonous, this one would sure be a candidate.
Thank you both….I get these in my yard sometimes and always wondered what the hell it was. Stinky, creepy – yuck!
Ugh–I hate those things. I hope you got rid of it. We had a rash of them a couple of years ago and I was digging out those little mushroom balls for days trying to keep them from sprouting.
I think its a squid stinkhorn or something like that. Its in the family of stinkhorns
They poped up so fast, it only took one hour for it to pop up.
How do you get rid of them?
Are they safe to eat? Are children safe around them?