Golden oyster mushroom or Branching oyster

The cap of the golden oyster mushroom is small — 2 to 6, occasionally up to 10 centimeters across. When young it is convex with an inrolled margin; with age it becomes funnel-shaped and depressed, with a thin, often wavy edge. The surface is dry, slightly velvety and matte. The color is the species' main glory: pure lemon-yellow or golden in young mushrooms, fading slightly with age to yellowish-cream. The mushrooms grow fused together in dense clusters, like a bouquet.

Cap up to 15 cm across, funnel-shaped with a deeply sunken center — the hallmark of the species (hence the name “cornucopiae” — “horn of plenty”). Whitish when young, turning creamy brown or ocher with age. Surface smooth, slightly sticky in wet weather. The margins are often wavy, sometimes raggedly torn.

The spore-bearing surface is made of gills. The gills are white or cream, fairly crowded, and run noticeably down the stem (decurrent), often all the way to its base. The spore print is pale pink or pinkish-lilac. Decurrent white gills contrasting with the yellow cap are a telltale feature of the species.

The gills run far down the stem and form a distinctive network (“anastomoses”) on the lower part of the stem — the gills interweave like a cobweb. White, cream with age. Spore print white or pale lilac.

The stem is thin, white or cream, often curved and off-center, 2 to 5 centimeters tall. Several stems usually fuse at a common base into a single cluster, from which the golden caps fan out. The surface is smooth. There is no ring and no volva. The stem flesh is tougher than the cap, so mostly the caps are eaten.

A stem is always present (unlike the oyster mushroom, where it often almost merges with the cap), 3–12 cm tall, 1–2 cm thick. Sometimes branched, central or slightly off-center. White, cream in mature ones. Tough and fibrous in old ones.

The flesh is white, thin and tender, and does not change color when cut. The taste is mild and pleasant, with a nutty hint. Because the flesh is thin and the stem tougher, choose young caps for the table. When cooked, the mushroom loses some of its brightness but keeps its pleasant taste and aroma.

The flesh is white, springy in young ones, getting tougher with age, especially in the stem. It does NOT change color when cut. The texture is like the oyster mushroom’s, but a little denser and springier.

The smell is pleasant and mushroomy, somewhat mealy or nutty in fresh mushrooms. Scent isn't a defining feature; the mushroom is recognized above all by the bright lemon-yellow color of its caps, its growth in dense clusters on hardwood and its decurrent white gills.

The smell is distinctive — a blend of anise and flour notes over a faint mushroomy base. Stronger in young specimens. The taste is mild, with a hint of hazelnut.