Ramaria abietina (Pers.: Fries) Quélet
Flore Mycol. de France. 1888.

Common Name: none

• Sporocarp

  Fruiting body 2-5 cm tall, rounded to fan-shaped; branches thin, yellow-brown to olive-brown, darker in age, irregularly divided, the tips relatively short; branches sometimes bruising bluish-green or developing greenish tones in age; flesh tough; taste bitter.

• Stipe

  Stipe 1-2 cm tall, solid or consisting of partially fused branches, yellow-brown to olive brown, bruising green at the base; rhizomorphs frequently found at the base.

• Spores

  Spores 5.5-7.5 x 3-4 µm, elliptical, warted; spores yellow brown in deposit.

• Habitat

  Gregarious, sometimes in arcs, i.e. partial fairy rings, in duff under conifers, especially Monterey cypress and Coast Redwood; from late fall to late winter.

• Edibility

  Inedible, due to tough texture and bitter taste.

• Comments

  Ramaria abietina is one of our most common small Ramarias. It is nonetheless frequently overlooked because of its diminutive stature and cryptic coloration. Finding a single specimen, however, will often reveal an arc of emerging fruiting bodies stretching many feet. The blue-green staining character and terrestrial habit as opposed to growing on decayed wood, helps to separate this species from other small Ramarias.

• Other Descriptions and Photos
  • Fred Stevens: Ramaria abietina (CP) -- note the blue-green stains
  • Fred Stevens: Ramaria abietina (CP) -- note the blue-green stains
  • Fred Stevens: Ramaria abietina (CP)
  • Michael Wood: Ramaria abietina (CP)
  • Michael Wood: Ramaria abietina (CP)
  • Arora (1986): p. 650 (D & P)
  • Breitenbach & Kränzlin (vol.2): sp. 458 (D, I, & CP)
  • Jordan: p. 89 (D & CP) [=Ramaria ochraceovirens]
  • Marr & Stuntz: p. 134 (D), fig. 51 (I), fig. 99 (P)

  (D=Description; I=Illustration; P=Photo; CP=Color Photo)