Red Lawn Fungus/Mushroom?

Question

I'm giving it another go... I have a bright red lawn fungus/mushroom popping up on my lawn here, in Miami. Exotic, yes, it reminds me of the Epcot sphere but the size of a small animal, up to 4 inches across (already thinking of names). I'm trying the extenion suggestion but haven't connected, yet. The invaders have a putrid smell, attracting flys that crawl through openings that are part of the 'design' on the surface. They fall apart like a deflated cream puff when handled, are fleshy/slimy and have a pale to white base that attaches to the ground. Not star shaped, I've not seen anything remotely resembling these things. How's that?

Answer 1

From your description, it certainly sounds like you've found a mushroom called; Latticed Stinkhorn (Clathrus ruber).

These mushrooms are commonly found in Florida where wood mulch has been used. Stinkhorn fungi are known to produce foul-smelling mushrooms very similar to rotted meat. They are found growing during Fall thru Spring in your area. Other than smelling bad, they are good decomposters of decaying matter and will not hurt your lawn.

Here are two websites for you to view to help determine if this is what you have growing on your lawn.

http://home.pacbell.net/seaonion/stink.html

http://www.built-4-u.com/ecgardening/previous/Story19.html

Hope this is answered your question!

Answer 2

I think there is a lawn fungus called slim mold or slim fungus. If you go to Home Depot, there are a couple of Scott's products that are for lawn fungus. Though I do the organic thing in my yard, I do not think I could tolerate that w/o getting some kind of chemical control.