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Giant Funnel
Edible 
Inedible 
Autumn 
Summer 
A large chunky mushroom which can be found in fairly large numbers and is edible to most but can cause gastric upsets in some. This doesn’t really matter as the mushrooms are usually infested with maggots, even when young, making them more maggot than flesh.
| Mushroom Type | |
| Common Names | Giant Funnel, Twmffat / Twndish Enfawr (CY), Białokrowiak Okazały (PL), Hatalmas Tölcsérgomba (HU) |
| Scientific Name | Aspropaxillus giganteus |
| Synonyms | Leucopaxillus giganteus, Paxillus giganteus, Clitocybe gigantea |
| Season Start | Jul |
| Season End | Nov |
| Average Mushroom height (CM) | 10–20 |
| Average Cap width (CM) | 10–40 |
Cap
10–40 cm. The cap starts ivory white and convex but soon flattens out with a downward turned edge before becoming funnel shaped and turning a tan/off white colour. This mushroom can be very varied in size with the cap measuring from ten to forty five cm across with the larger specimens being rarer.
Gills
The gills are decurrent (running down the stem) and forked. White and crowded becoming off white with age.
Stem
4–8 cm long, 2.5-4 cm diameter. Thick, can be up to 5cm. White with vertical ‘fibres’ which can discolour to tan.
Flesh
White, fairly tough and usually full of maggots.
Habitat
Open woodland and hedgerows, grassland and beside country lanes.
Possible Confusion
The Fleecy Milkcap, pictured, can look very similar but produces latex from the gills and flesh, unlike the Giant Funnel.
The Trooping Funnel can look similar but has a much longer stem, an umbo in the middle of the cap, is more tan coloured and does not produce latex.
Some members of genus Clitocybe can look like the Giant Funnel but the clue is in the name, the cap can be up to forty+ cm in diameter with a short, thick stem distinguishing it from most of the Clitocyboid species.
Spore Print
White. Ellipsoid and smooth.
Taste / Smell
Not a highly regarded mushroom.
Frequency
Not common.
Other Facts
This mushroom is reported as edible but can cause gastric upsets in some people so it is best to try just a small amount well cooked if it your first time trying them.
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