Field mushroom or Vittadini's lepidella

Cap 5–15 cm across, spherical when young, then flat or slightly umbonate. White or slightly creamy, cracking in dry weather; fibrous scales may appear as it matures. The margin is inrolled at first, then straight.

The cap is 7–15 cm across, sometimes up to 18. Young caps are globular or hemispherical, then convex and finally almost flat. The colour is white, cream or ivory, turning ochre with age. The skin is dry and peels easily.

The whole cap is covered in remnants of the universal veil: dense warts, thickest in the centre, and scales that overlap like tiles towards the edge. On young caps the warts are pointed and pyramid-shaped; on older ones they're flatter and cream-yellow or greyish ochre. The edge overhangs the gills and carries hanging scraps of veil; it isn't grooved.

Gills free (not reaching the stem) and crowded: soft pink at first, then bright pink, and chocolate-brown or blackish in mature mushrooms. Pink gills are a key safety feature that sets the field mushroom apart from poisonous species with white gills.

The gills are free, not reaching the stem, crowded and broad, with short gills in between. They start white and become cream, sometimes with a greyish or greenish tint, but they never turn pink or brown like a field mushroom's.

The spore print is white to cream. Under the microscope the spores are amyloid, turning blue-black in iodine.

Stem 4–8 cm tall, 1–2 cm thick, cylindrical, solid and straight. White. A firm membranous ring sits in the middle of the stem, a characteristic feature. No volva.

The stem is 8–16 cm tall, sometimes 20, and 1.5–3 cm thick, white, cylindrical, slightly narrower at the top, firm and solid. It's smooth above the ring, and below it, right from the base, it's covered in bands of pointed, upturned scales. The scales go brownish with age and handling.

The ring sits high, just under the cap. It's broad, membranous, double and white, with no grooves: smooth on top and fluffy underneath. It may yellow slightly when touched.

The base roots into the soil. There's no sack-like volva of the kind a death cap has: the veil leaves only scales like those on the stem, and they're visible only on young mushrooms.

Flesh firm and white; it turns slightly pink when cut or stays unchanged. It doesn’t turn yellow (yellowing is a sign of poisonous species). The taste is pleasant and richly mushroomy.

The flesh is white, thick and firm. It hardly changes when cut, apart from yellowing slightly at the stem base. The taste is mild and sweetish.

A pronounced smell of anise and almond with mushroomy notes, making it one of the most aromatic wild mushrooms. Cooking intensifies the aroma, and it can dominate the dish.

The smell is faint and pleasant; Italian mycologists liken it to clean laundry. It almost disappears with age, and old specimens can smell unpleasant, with a garlicky note from the gills.