mushroom in herb pot - is this dangerous?

[DIS]

I have found mushrooms in several of my herb pots. These mushrooms appeared at different times and in soil from different sources, but were all the same (as in, the same type of mushroom). I assume, therefore, that their spores come with the wind in some manner or another.
Since I generally cook with these herbs I'm worried - can I continue using herbs from mushroom-ridden pots? So far I haven't, but they're so abundant this is becoming a significant problem.
The attached pictures are of the largest of the mushrooms I had, which appeared near a sage plant:





Just another question: Is there a way of getting rid of these mushrooms without killing the plant near which they grow?

Thanks a lot,
D.

[cynthia_h]

I've been regularly pulling and throwing away "volunteer mushrooms" in my Square Foot Garden bed and my tomato containers this year.

Just be sure to pull them gently and straight up so that you can get some of the root mass. They'll eventually give up and go away.

I've been eating the tomatoes and the other veggies--the tomatoes mostly raw, and the others mostly cooked. Neither my husband, my dogs, nor I have suffered any ill effects from potential mushroom "roots."

I have NOT composted them, on the theory of "Better Safe Than Sorry," because I know that my compost doesn't get hot enough to kill many kinds of fungi/bacteria.

Cynthia H.
USDA Zone 9, Sunset Zone 17

[fish dr.]

Looks like a Flower Pot Lepiota. Had some of these before in a flower pot. Pretty...and harmless. Good name for them.

[sid]

hiya yep it does look like a lepiota lutea . Eaten they can cause slight unpset in some people but as for effecting your herbs there is no danger at all! The mushroom has come up because the mycelium in the soil is dying (white stuff just under the top of soil) so it has sent up its fruiting body(mushroom or toadstool) re-spore. Just gentley pull them out and they will stop producing. bit long winded but hope this helps