Did you come across certain plants that look like mushrooms? If not, here’s a bunch of such species that’ll blow your mind!
Mushrooms have always been the stuff of fairytales, and the playful side of nature gives rise to plants resembling mushrooms. They are interesting in looks, yet nothing like mushrooms at all! In fact, some plants on our list are succulents that look like mushrooms—isn’t that quite whimsical?
Plants That Look Like Mushrooms
1. Ghost Plant
Botanical Name: Monotropa uniflora
Also known as the Indian pipe or corpse plant, this understory plant has a ghostly white coloration due to the lack of chlorophyll that might trick you into confusing it with a mushroom. Plus, when in bloom, it looks like a congregation of small, white mushrooms sprouting from the forest floor.
2. Cooper’s Haworthia
Botanical Name: Haworthia cooperi
These mini succulents look like dew-covered mushrooms with their plump, translucent leaves clustered tightly. Each leaf is almost bubble-like, with soft, rounded tips that glisten in the light. When clustered in a pot, these plants give the impression of a group of glistening, tiny, green mushrooms.
3. Baby Toes
Botanical Name: Fenestraria rhopalophylla
Each “toe” is a cylindrical, fleshy leaf topped with a translucent window, similar to the cap of a mushroom. These windows allow light to enter for photosynthesis.
In fact, the way these plants cluster closely together in sandy soil gives them the look of a group of small, stout mushrooms emerging from the ground.
4. Wine Cup
Botanical Name: Crassula umbella
Its umbrella-like leaves, which form a cup shape, pretty much look like an inverted mushroom cap. The leaves are waxy and can range in color from green to reddish-purple, similar to the Mouse-Pee Pinkgill or Chicken Lips varieties.
The resemblance is particularly prominent when it’s in bloom, with the leaves forming a protective canopy over the flowers, just like a mushroom sheltering its gills.
5. Liverworts
Botanical Name: Marchantiophyta
These primitive plants boast a simple, flat structure that can remind you of tiny, green mushrooms spread across a surface. Its thallus, or plant body, is leaf-like but lacks the typical plant structure, giving it this flat, fleshy appearance akin to mushroom caps sprawling on a damp forest floor or tree bark.
6. Living Stones
Botanical Name: Lithops
These rock-like succulents have two thick, fleshy leaves that join at the ground level, just like a mushroom’s stem and cap. Plus, their textures and color patterns often resemble the intricate designs found on some mushrooms.
Especially when seen from above, they look like a cluster of tiny, colorful mushrooms nestled in the soil.
