Snowy waxcap or Meadow waxcap

The snowy waxcap’s cap is small, 1 to 4 centimetres across. Convex to bell-shaped when young, it opens out flat with age, often with a small knob and a wavy, sometimes cracked margin. The surface is smooth and slightly slippery in wet weather, white or cream, sometimes with a faint ochre tint in the centre. That pure white colour is what gave the mushroom its name.

The cap is 2 to 8 cm across, up to 10 to 12 cm in large specimens. It starts convex, then flattens, often with a broad bump or a slightly sunken centre, and has a thin margin. The surface is dry and matt, smooth or with faint flattened fibres, slightly slippery in wet weather, and may crack with age.

The colour is pale salmon, apricot, orange-buff or brownish orange, fading to pale buff with age. A rare form is entirely white.

The gills are thick, widely spaced, waxy to the touch and run noticeably down the stem (decurrent); they’re white or cream. The spore print is white. Thick, waxy, decurrent white gills are typical of the Hygrophoraceae family (waxcaps).

The gills are thick, broad, widely spaced, waxy to the touch and clearly decurrent, often running more than a centimetre down the stem. Many shorter gills sit between them, and older caps develop cross-veins. They start whitish or cream and later take on the cap colour.

The spore print is white. These thick, distant, decurrent gills are the best way to tell it from its lookalikes.

The stem is thin and white, 2 to 6 centimetres tall, cylindrical and often narrowing toward the base, dry or slightly slippery. It has no ring and no volva. The surface is smooth, and the stem is as fragile as the rest of the mushroom.

The stem is 3 to 8 cm tall and 0.5 to 1.5 cm thick, sturdy, solid and later hollow, tapering towards the base. It's white or cream, tinged with the cap colour at the top, and always paler than the cap. There's no ring or volva.

The flesh is white, thin and waxy, and doesn’t change colour when cut. It tastes mild, without bitterness, but rather bland. Thin flesh and small size limit its culinary value, so it rounds out a basket rather than forming the basis of a dish.

The flesh is thick in the cap, whitish, pale orange or pinkish buff, and doesn't change colour when cut.

The smell is faint, pleasant or barely noticeable, with no sharp notes. Since smell won’t help much, identify it by the pure white, slightly slippery cap, the thick, waxy decurrent gills and its habit of growing in groups in autumn meadows.

The smell and taste aren't distinctive. There's no mealy smell, unlike the oak woodwax.