Lead-gray porcini (Bovista plumbea)
- Division: Basidiomycota (Basidiomycetes)
- Subdivision: Agaricomycotina (Agaricomycetes)
- Class: Agaricomycetes (Agaricomycetes)
- Subclass: Agaricomycetidae (Agaricomycetes)
- Order: Agaricales (Agaric or Lamellar)
- Family: Agaricaceae (Champignon)
- Genus: Bovista (Porkhovka)
- Type: Bovista plumbea (Lead-gray fluff)
- Damn tobacco
- Lead raincoat
Description:
Fruiting body 1-3 (5) cm in diameter, round, spherical, with a thin root process, white, often dirty from adhering earth and sand, later – gray, steel, matte with a dense skin. When ripe, it opens with a small hole at the top with a ragged edge through which spores spread.
Spore powder brown.
The flesh is white at first, then grayish, odorless
Spread:
From June to September (mass fruiting during warming from late July to mid-September), on poor sandy soil, in woodlands, on roadsides, in clearings and meadows, singly and in groups, not uncommon. Dry last year’s brown bodies filled with spores are found in spring.
Evaluation:
edible mushroom (4 categories) at a young age (with a light fruiting body and with white flesh), used similarly to raincoats.