Smooth Puffball (Lycoperdon molle)

🏷️ Description

Lycoperdon molle, known as the Smooth Puffball or Soft Puffball, is a fascinating member of the puffball family. First described scientifically by Dutch mycologist Christiaan Hendrik Persoon in 1799, it’s easily recognized by its pear-shaped or spherical fruiting body and distinctive granular, spiny texture.

🔎 Identification

• Size: Typically 0.98 to 2.76 inches (2.5 to 7 cm) in diameter, and 0.98 to 3.15 inches (2.5 to 8 cm) tall.

• Shape: Pear-shaped (pyriform) or turbinate, often with a noticeable pseudostipe (short stem).

• Outer Surface (Exoperidium): Initially cream-colored to pale-buff, maturing to tan, grayish-brown, or medium-brown. Covered with tiny, soft, bran-like spines mixed with mealy granules that easily detach without leaving a net pattern—unlike the related hedgehog puffball. 🌰

• Inner Surface (Endoperidium): Smooth, buff-colored after spines fall away.

• Interior Flesh (Gleba): Initially white, changing to yellowish-green, then olive-brown to dark brown or chocolate brown with age. 🍫

• Spore color: Reddish-brown to yellow-reddish-brown.

• Spores: Round, measuring 4.0-5.0 µm (approximately 4-6 µm), distinctly warted, each spore with a small central oil droplet. The spores often carry sterigmal remnants, visible under the microscope. 🔬

• Capillitium: Abundant with numerous small, round-to-oval pores.

🌲 Habitat & Ecology

This puffball appears solitary or in small clusters, favoring open areas, trails, and forest clearings in mixed deciduous and coniferous woods. It thrives from coastal regions to the mid-elevations of mountainous areas like the Sierra Nevada. Fruiting season extends from late spring (May) to mid-winter (November), though primarily in autumn. It acts as a secondary decomposer, playing a vital ecological role in nutrient recycling. ♻️🌎

👃👅 Odor & Taste

The Smooth Puffball emits a mild, spicy, pleasantly mushroom-like aroma, complemented by a mild mushroomy flavor. However, it's generally considered a “war mushroom” (emergency edible)—nutritious but not particularly tasty. 🚨🥔

🍽️ Edibility

While the exact culinary value remains largely untested, it’s presumed edible when immature—provided the internal flesh (gleba) remains white. Caution is advised: Always slice puffballs vertically to ensure no gills or developing structures inside. Young deadly poisonous mushrooms, like the lethal Death Cap (Amanita phalloides), can deceptively appear as puffballs! ⚠️☠️

👀 Look-Alikes

Careful identification is essential. Similar puffballs include:

• Lycoperdon umbrinum: Typically found in acidic, coniferous habitats; lacks granules on its exoperidium, gleba more olive-brown, spores without sterigmal remains.

• Lycoperdon perlatum: Has distinctive conical spines leaving round scars after shedding, helping in differentiation.

• Pear-shaped Puffball (Apioperdon pyriforme): Prefers rotting wood substrates; lacks spines, forms large clusters, and exhibits dense rhizomorphs at the base.

• Lycoperdon decipiens & L. lambinonii: Mediterranean species or rare conifer associates, subtly different in spore size and ornamentation.

💡 Interesting Facts

• Puffballs, including L. molle, disperse spores through an apical pore, sending tiny clouds into the air when touched—truly a whimsical sight in nature! 🌬️✨

• Historically called a “war mushroom,” used in survival situations due to nutritional content, despite its uninspiring taste.

📜 Synonyms

• Lycoperdon gemmatum var. furfuraceumFries (1829)

• Lycoperdon cupricum Bonorden (1851)

• Lycoperdon turbinatum var. γ furfuraceum(Fries) J. Kickx f. (1867)

• Lycoperdon glabellum Peck (1879) [1878]

• Lycoperdon gemmatum var. molle (Persoon) Saccardo (1888)

• Lycoperdon umbrinum var. glabellum (Peck) Hollós (1903)

• Lycoperdon umbrinum var. cupricum (Bonorden) Hollós (1903)

• Lycoperdon umbrinum f. glabellum (Peck) F. Šmarda (1951)

Photo sources:

Photo 1 - Author: Mandy Hackney (CC BY 4.0)

Photo 2 - Author: Vasco Henrique Oliveira Fonseca (CC BY 4.0)

Photo 3 - Author: Victor Laborde (CC BY 4.0)

Photo 4 - Author: Katrin Simon (CC BY 4.0)