Plums and Custard

Description:

Cap: 3-12 cm; convex with an incurved margin, becoming broadly convex, broadly bell-shaped, or nearly flat; dry; densely covered with red to purplish red or brick red fibers; with maturity the fibers aggregating into small scales and the yellow ground color beneath showing through. Gills: Attached to the stem; close or crowded; yellow. Stem: 4-12 cm long; up to 2 cm thick; yellow, covered with red fibers like those on the cap--but often more sparsely, especially in age; with a yellow, fiber-less zone at the extreme apex. Flesh: Yellow to pale yellow. Odor and Taste: Odor fragrant or not distinctive; taste mild or slightly radishlike. Spore Print: White.

Habitat:

Saprobic on the well decayed wood of conifers; occasionally found in woodchips, sawdust, and lignin-rich soil; growing alone, scattered or small troops; summer and fall (also winter and spring in warm climates); widely distributed in North America.