lily89•4mo ago

Found a weird fungus in my greenhouse after that rainstorm last June

I live near Portland and we got that crazy rainstorm last June that dumped 4 inches in two days. A week later I found this orange slimy stuff growing on the soil of my ferns. Turns out it was a type of slime mold called dog vomit fungus. I freaked out at first but then learned it's actually harmless and helps break down organic matter. Now I just leave it alone when it shows up instead of trying to nuke it with chemicals. Has anyone else dealt with surprise fungi popping up after heavy rain?

2 comments

Log in to join the discussion

Log In

2 Comments

adam_thomas4mo ago

Second year I found dog vomit slime mold after a heavy August downpour, right in the mulch around my tomatoes. I just scraped it off the top layer and tossed it in the compost pile, never spread or hurt anything. Only real trick is keeping the soil surface from staying wet too long, a bit of airflow around plants stops it before it gets going.

5

jamieburns4mo ago

Oh man, dog vomit slime mold is such a great name for it. One thing though, tossing it in the compost pile isn't the best idea since the spores can survive and you might just spread it around next time you use that compost. Better to bag it up and throw it in the trash.

8