Clitocybe odora

Clitocybe odora, commonly known as the blue green anise mushroom, or aniseed toadstool, is a blue-green mushroom that smells strongly like anise. It grows near deciduous and coniferous trees, in small groups alongside tree roots. This mushroom is edible but may resemble poisonous species.

Taxonomy

First described by the French mycologist Jean Baptiste Francois Pierre Bulliard. The specific epithet odora is from the Latin meaning "perfumed".

Description

Young specimens have a bell-shaped cap with a light blue texture that fades to grey in age. The cap measures wide. Mature specimens have blue-green, cup-shaped caps with a rough surface; the gills are adnate to decurrent and creamy white or blue-green. The spore print is whitish to slightly pink.
The stem is white to buff or cap-colored with no ring. It grows up to tall and 2 cm thick. The mushroom has a strong scent and taste of aniseed, hence its name. The odor is due to the presence of and a small amount of benzaldehyde.
There is a white variety that has the same strong odour.

Similar species

Outside of Clitocybe, young specimens could be confused with Stropharia aeruginosa, in addition to other poisonous species.

Distribution and habitat

Found in both deciduous, and coniferous woods, it is widespread in the temperate zones, occurring in Asia, Europe, and North America. On the East Coast of North America it favours oak woodland, but it is often abundant in the coniferous forests of the Pacific Northwest. It grows under trees and in debris.

Edibility

The caps can be dried and used as a condiment, or used fresh for flavouring. Mushroom hunters are advised to pick mature specimens, as the younger ones can be confused with several similar poisonous ones that grow with this mushroom. Every part of the mushroom should be examined before collecting for the table. Also, the stem and the cut cap should be checked to see if there are any fly larvae. Some guides recommend against eating the species.