Here’s one of two mushrooms I pulled from the yard before mowing. It’s from the exact same spot from which they continually grow.

Their root is almost as solid as wood and looks exactly like large pieces of caramelized popcorn. The root is dry. The part that appears above ground is white and softer than the root.

As far as I can remember it never opened as much as it grew in irregular clusters.

These grow on the North side of our house in the spot where we had a tree cut down in 2006 and the stump ground below the ground. They are always there, and we’re always mowing over them.

I have no idea what they are. Do you?

UPDATE: @amberadams told me on Twitter it looks like Tsugae Reishi. After some digging around on reishis, I settled on the Ganoderma lucidum (Lingzhi), otherwise known as Lacquered bracket. Here is what Wikipedia said about some of its magical powers.

Lingzhi ranked number one of the superior medicines, and was therefore the most exalted medicine in ancient times.

It’s used in all kinds of herbal medicines, including cancer treatments. Here’s a little more from Wikipedia, but check out the medicinal uses sections.

The word lingzhi, in Chinese, means “herb of spiritual potency” and has also been described as “mushroom of immortality”. Because of its presumed health benefits and apparent absence of side-effects, it has attained a reputation in the East as the ultimate herbal substance. Lingzhi has now been added to the American Herbal Pharmacopoeia and Therapeutic Compendium.