Mushroom A mushroom or toadstool is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground, on soil, or on its food source. ''Toadstool'' generally denotes one poisonous to humans. The standard for the name "mushroom" is ...

s can be used to create color dyes via color-extraction with a solvent (often

ammonia Ammonia is an inorganic compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula . A stable binary hydride, and the simplest pnictogen hydride, ammonia is a colourless gas with a distinct pungent smell. Biologically, it is a common nitrogenous wa ...

) as well as particulation of raw material. The shingled hedgehog mushroom and related species contain blue-green pigments, which are used for dyeing wool in Norway. The fruiting body of ''

Hydnellum peckii ''Hydnellum peckii'' is a fungus in the genus '' Hydnellum'' of the family Bankeraceae. It is a hydnoid species, producing spores on the surface of vertical spines or tooth-like projections that hang from the undersurface of the fruit bodi ...

'' can be used to produce a beige color when no

mordant A mordant or dye fixative is a substance used to set (i.e. bind) dyes on fabrics by forming a coordination complex with the dye, which then attaches to the fabric (or tissue). It may be used for dyeing fabrics or for intensifying stains in ...

is used, and shades of blue or green depending on the mordant added. ''

Phaeolus schweinitzii ''Phaeolus schweinitzii'', commonly known as velvet-top fungus, dyer's polypore, dyer's mazegill, or pine dye polypore, is a fungal plant pathogen that causes butt rot on conifers such as Douglas-fir, spruce, fir, hemlock, pine, and larch. ''P ...

'' produces green, yellow, gold, or brown colors, depending on the material dyed and the mordant used.

References

{{reflist Fungi and humans Natural dyes

See also

References