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Velvet Shank

Velvet Shank ©Ben Cook

Velvet shank

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Scientific name: Flammulina velutipes
The velvet shank can be found clustered on the dead and dying wood of deciduous trees, such as elm, ash, beech or oak. It has a bright orange cap and can be seen throughout winter.

Top facts

Stats

Cap diameter: 4-12cm
Stem height: up to 10cm

Conservation status

Common.

When to see

November to February

About

With its glossy, golden-orange caps, the velvet shank is quite commonly seen growing in clusters on stumps of decaying hard wood. It is also known as the 'Winter Mushroom' as it is one of the few mushrooms that can be seen throughout the winter months, right into early spring. The Latin name, Flammulina, refers to the bright orange, flame-like colour of the cap. Fungi belong to their own kingdom and get their nutrients and energy from organic matter, rather than photosynthesis like plants. It is often just the fruiting bodies, or 'mushrooms', that are visible to us, arising from an unseen network of tiny filaments called 'hyphae'. These fruiting bodies produce spores for reproduction, although fungi can also reproduce asexually by fragmentation.

What to look for

The velvet shank displays fleshy, yellow-orange caps that are convex at first, but become flatter, more irregular and undulating with age. The surface of the caps is smooth and quite slimy when wet, and they have a faintly striated margin. The gills are white to pale yellow. The stem is rich reddish-brown and quite velvety at the base.

Where to find

Widespread.

Did you know?

The velvet shank relies on dead wood, but the importance of this habitat for wildlife is often overlooked: to keep a place 'neat', mature and ageing trees may be removed and fallen dead wood cleared away. By keeping dead wood in your garden, you can encourage all kinds of fungi to grow, in turn, attracting the wildlife that depends upon it.