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Mushrooms in season in March

6 species in our guide fruit in March. 3 are edible and 2 are poisonous or deadly — learn those first.

Field card for:

Choosing a region puts species of beech, oak and chalk grassland at the top. Save as PDF from the print window to keep it on your phone.

Edibles to look for in March

Velvet Shank in the field

Velvet Shank

Flammulina velutipes

Edible

A winter mushroom: sticky orange caps in clusters on dead elm and other broadleaf wood, often through frost.

Oyster Mushroom in the field

Oyster Mushroom

Pleurotus ostreatus

Edible

Shell-shaped tiers on dead broadleaf wood, often after the first cold snap.

Jelly Ear in the field

Jelly Ear

Auricularia auricula-judae

Edible

Rubbery brown ears growing on elder all year round. The same species sold dried in Chinese cookery.

Dangerous species out in March

False Morel in the field

False Morel

Gyromitra esculenta

Deadly poisonous

A spring lookalike for the morel with a lobed brain-like cap. Its toxin is related to rocket fuel.

Sulphur Tuft

Hypholoma fasciculare

Poisonous

Dense sulphur-yellow clusters on stumps all year. Very common, very bitter, and toxic.

Compare edibles with their lookalikes

Also fruiting

Morel in the field

Morel

Morchella esculenta

Edible with caution

The great prize of spring: a honeycombed hollow cone, best hunted on disturbed chalky ground.

Never eat a wild mushroom on the strength of a website alone. Some deadly species look very like good edibles. Check every feature, and get an expert opinion if there is any doubt at all.

Read the full foraging safety guidance.

March field card
South East & lowland England · beech, oak and chalk grassland
wildmushroomsonline.co.uk
To look out for
Velvet Shank
Flammulina velutipes
Cap: 2-8cm, tawny-orange, smooth and distinctly sticky or slimy.
Underside: Pale cream to yellowish, fairly widely spaced, attached.
Found? ☐ Where/tree: ________
Oyster Mushroom
Pleurotus ostreatus
Cap: 5-20cm, shell or fan-shaped, grey-blue to buff or brown, smooth.
Underside: White and decurrent, running well down the short stem.
Found? ☐ Where/tree: ________
Jelly Ear
Auricularia auricula-judae
Cap: 3-10cm, ear-shaped, tan to dark brown, velvety outside, smooth and ve…
Underside: None.
Found? ☐ Where/tree: ________
⚠ Danger — also out in March
False Morel (Gyromitra esculenta): DEADLY. Contains gyromitrin, which becomes monomethylhydrazine.
Sulphur Tuft (Hypholoma fasciculare): Causes violent vomiting and, rarely, serious liver damage.
Never eat anything you are not 100% sure of — this card is a prompt, not an identification. Pick only for personal use, with the landowner's permission. Unsure? Post your find or try the photo identifier at wildmushroomsonline.co.uk.