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Velvet Shank
Kingdom: Fungi Division: Basidiomycota Class: Agaricomycetes Order: Agaricales Family: Physalacriaceae Genus: Flammulina
The mushroom naturally grows on the stumps of the hackberry tree and on other trees, such as ash, mulberry and persimmon trees.
There is a significant difference in appearance between the wild and cultivated types of the Enoki mushroom. Cultivated mushrooms have not been exposed to light, resulting in a white color, whereas wild mushrooms usually display a dark brown color. Cultivated mushrooms are grown in a carbon dioxide-rich environment to nurture the development of long thin stems, whereas wild mushrooms produce a much shorter and thicker stem.
The mushroom could be confused with the poisonous Galerina marginata, which has brown caps and stipe, and brown, rusty spores; it also tends to grow isolated and presents a ring.