Sprucecone capStrobilurus esculentus

The cap of the sprucecone cap is tiny — 0.5 to 2.5 centimeters across. When young it is convex to bell-shaped, becoming almost flat with age. The surface is smooth, dry or slightly moist, matte. The coloring is gray-brown, dark brown or olive-gray, darker in the center and paler at the margin. The small dark cap on a long, thin stem makes the mushroom look like a tiny nail.

The hymenophore is gilled. The gills are white or cream, fairly crowded, attached to the stem or almost free. The spore print is white. Against the darker cap the pale gills stand out well; combined with growth on spruce cones, this reliably sets the species apart.

The stem is very thin and long relative to the cap — up to 8 centimeters tall and 1–2 millimeters thick, springy like a piece of wire. At the top it is pale yellowish-brown, darkening downward to reddish-brown, and the base continues into a characteristic root-like extension (pseudorhiza) that reaches down to the buried cone. There is no ring and no volva.

The flesh is extremely thin, pale in the cap, tough and fibrous in the stem. It does not change color when cut. The taste is mild and pleasant, without bitterness. Because of the tiny size and tough stem, only the caps are good for the table, and even they have modest culinary value.

The smell is faint, pleasant and mushroomy, with no sharp notes. The aroma is not a defining feature; you recognize this mushroom primarily by its tiny size, growth on spruce cones, long thin stem with a root-like extension and its early spring season.