Ken’s Weekly Tips – How to remove Toadstools from the lawn

by Ken C | Last Updated: 14/07/2021

The weather has been perfect for mushrooms and toadstools – the soil being warm and damp. But what should you do about it if you have mushrooms and toadstools in your lawn?

Here’s my answer.

When you’re mowing lawns and looking after grass, or even getting asked lots of questions about lawns, what do people ask you about? They ask you about toadstools. What do I do about my toadstools?

Well, let’s get down and have a look at what well actually most people would call them mushrooms, but in fact, they’re toadstools, and they quite pretty really. Do you think the fairies have been here during the night?

The conditions at the moment are just right for them. It’s of course, damp, moist, warm in the ground, the ground has warmed up. So how do we get rid of them?

Well ideally, what you need to do is just pick them off so you would just pick them off. Because if you actually see the spores underneath is where you would spread them if you chop them up much with a mower mulch it. You’ll actually spread the mushroom around the place.

They’re rather pretty really and they?

What are you gonna do about it? Well, there’s no chemical cure really for them at all. We used to have fungicides that we could use on mushrooms on lawns but really quite honestly, most of those things have disappeared.

What we normally do is suggest that you just sweep them off the lawn into a dustpan and then get rid of them. You can put them on the compost heap, they won’t do any harm at all. But basically, you just have to put up with mushrooms on your lawn.

Now, they’re toadstools of course now I mentioned mushrooms, and some of the gardens that I keep an eye on, we have some fantastic field mushrooms growing. Now, okay, they’re field mushrooms, but be very careful. I wouldn’t eat them, even though they smell and look like mushrooms. So never pick toadstools unless you really know what you’re doing.

I’ve been out with a lady who taught me years ago, which were good and which were bad. But be careful. Don’t just eat mushrooms that you found in a field. I’d rather go to the supermarket and buy them quiet honestly.

However, the lawn. Yes, sweep them off, keep the lawn mowed. We’re talking lawns today. And don’t forget that lawns need regular cutting even if it’s damp and rainy. Keep the lawns cut. Regular cutting will keep your lawn in good condition.

And don’t worry about the fairies.

Ken Crowther is an award winning broadcaster, author and member of the Chartered Institute of Horticulture. He has been gardening for over 50 years and his knowledge and experience are drawn on to provide advice and information about garden design, plants for all seasons, gardening techniques and gardening tips. Gardening with Ken's broad appeal means he reaches a wide audience across the UK from amateur gardeners to top level horticulturists.