Fairy Rings

[lenaanthony]

Fairy ring mushrooms obtained their name from old folklores, as it was once believed that these mushrooms grew in a circle followed by a pathway, and this came about by fairies dancing in a circle.

[lenaanthony]

The most well known fairy ring fungus is Marasmius oreades. The main body part of the fungus, its mycelium, is based underground. It grows outwards in the form of a ring, and uses up the nutrients from the soil as it grows, depriving the grass beneath it of food.

[lenaanthony]

Large rings come into being when the center of the older mycelium is finally exhausted of all its nutrients and dies. Upon decomposition, the nutrients are returned to the earth's soil and the grass will begin to grow once again.

[lenaanthony]

Fairy rings of the M. oreades species are called free rings, as they are capable of continuous growth, to the point where a barrier is attained. At times a barrier can even be in the form of another fairy ring, and rings which grow into one another's space and die as it reaches each other are called the "dead zone".

[lenaanthony]

In the absence of barriers, a free ring can be formed, which can grow up to 8 inches per year, and can strive to reach a diameter of more than 30 feet.

[lenaanthony]

A fairy ring formed in France by the species Clitocybe geotropa was almost half a mile in diameter length, and was believed to be of at least 700 years of age! 

[lenaanthony]

Mycorrhizal fungi, which have a symbiotic relationship with trees, also form fairy rings, referred to as tethered rings. As the mushroom needs the tree for survival and vice versa, the mushroom's mycelium is always connected to the tree's root.

[Anam]

These mushrooms are also known as elf ring or elf circle, these mushrooms naturally occur in an arc form. They mostly grow in forest and tropical areas. They grow 33 ft in diameter.

[jonela]

About 60 mushroom species can grow in such pattern. Among them: the horse mushroom, the house mushroom, matsutake, fly amanita and death cap amanita, too.

[Anam]

Fairy rings are amongst the oldest colonies of mushrooms that are mostly found in England. The mushroom rings are so huge in size that they can be seen while sitting in an aeroplane.