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Leucocoprinus flos-sulphuris is a species of mushroom producing fungus in the family Agaricaceae.

Taxonomy
It was first described in 1851 by the German botanist Adalbert Schnizlein who classified it as Agaricus flos-sulphuris.

(type up awkward Germanic font from book to translate, possible he listed it as a synonym of something else?)

It was reclassified in 1918 by the Italian botanist and mycologist Oreste Mattirolo who classified it as Lepiota flos-sulphuris whilst also classifying Lepiota incerta.

The Austrian born Brazilian mycologist Johannes Rick classified it as ''Lepiota cepistipes var. flos-sulphuris'' by in 1961.

In 1948 the Czech mycologist Karel Cejp reclassified it as Leucocoprinus flos-sulphuris whilst also reclassifying Lepiota incerta as ''Leucocoprinus flos-sulphuris var. incertus.''

Cejp suggested that Lepiota flammula (now known as Leucocoprinus fragilissimus), Leucocoprinus birnbaumii and several other synonyms of these species could be synonyms.

Description
Leucocoprinus flos-sulphuris is a small yellow dapperling mushroom with thin, weak flesh which easily withers.

Cap: Starts bulbous or campanulate (bell shaped) before expanding with yellow-brown scales across the surface which are concentrated towards the centre of the cap and more sparse at the edges. The cap edges are slightly striated and furrowed. Gills: Free, distant and sulphur yellow. Stem: 5-10cm tall (including cap) and very thin tapering to a slightly bulbous base. It is weak and delicate and starts straight before becoming curved with age. The surface is sulphur yellow with slight orange scales that are denser towards the stem base. The membranous stem ring may disappear or dry out in older specimens. Spores: Ovoid to elliptical with a distinct germ pore. 4-6 x 8-10 μm. Smell: Cejp describes the smell as 'rather sharp' though this may not translate from Czech.

Cejp describes very small yellowish-brown sclerotia forming around the base of the mushroom and amongst the mycelium. Today this term is more commonly used for large, subterranean sclerotia like truffles and has a less common use in reference to Leucocoprinus species which do not form such underground features. Leucocoprinus birnbaumii however has been documented as forming tiny, 500-820 μm whitish-beige elliptical masses on top of the soil which have been referred to as sclerotia and shown to be genetically identical to the developed mushroom. Cejp's description of these yellowish-brown structures sounds like he may possibly be referring to the undeveloped primordium or hyphal knots (commonly called mushroom 'pins') of other mushrooms which had failed to grow. In Leucocoprinus birnbaumii the mycelium surrounding the base of a mushroom is often full of such primordia which start yellow but turn brown as they 'abort' and stop growing.

Cejp compares the features observed in L. flos-sulphuris to the sclerotia of Periola hirsuta (which may be synonymous with Sclerotium hirsutum) and Sclerotium mycetospora (now considered to be a synonym of Leucocoprinus cepistipes ). However it is important to note that during this period L. cepistipes, L. cretaceus and L. birnbaumii were often conflated, considered variants of one another, synonyms or even the same species. So it could potentially be any of these species.

Listed as a synonym of birnbaumii in

Chaetostroma Corda 1829 Revised Unrelated to Leucocoprinus from images.

from there it has been recorded, as far as I could ascertain, only from Ohio, Columlbus (Hard 1908). Search:

Birnbaumii (temp)
Leucocoprinus birnbaumii is a small, yellow dapperling mushroom which is frequently found in plant pots and greenhouses. The fruit bodies of Leucocoprinus birnbaumii are agaricoid (mushroom-shaped) and occur singly or in small clumps.

Cap: 2-7.5cm wide in maturity, starting bulbous to cylindrical before expanding to hemispherical or conical and flattening or sometimes appearing umbonate with age. The surface is lemon yellow to sulphur yellow, smooth or slightly powdery and covered in ragged, fibrous scales which are easily removed. The scales are darker yellow or brownish with age and more densely concentrated concentrated towards the centre disc where they often form a patch whilst at the edges they are sparser. The cap edges are striated and grooved (sulcate-striate) with a paler colour present in the grooves whilst the edges curl inwards when young before curving out with age or straightening. The cap flesh is firm when young but becomes softer and more fragile with age, it is a dull whitish colour. Gills: Free and often quite remote from the stem, sulphur yellow, with spacing that can vary from crowded to subdistant at up to 4mm wide. With age the gills may bulge in the middle (ventricose) and the edges can be fringed. Stem: 2.5-9cm long and 2-6mm thick at the top tapering to a bulbous or club shaped base which is 4-15mm thick. The interior is hollow but pithy with a shiny white colour whilst the exterior surface is lemon yellow to sulphur yellow and may discolour brownish with age. It is covered in fine powdery or woolly scales (pruinose to floccose-squamulose) across the full length starting from just above the base. The thin, membranous stem ring is located anywhere between the top and bottom of the stem (superior to inferior) and is movable. The top surface of it is yellow whilst the underside is whitish however the ring is evanescent and may disappear. Spore print: White. Spores: Ellipsoid to amygdaliform with a large germ pore. Dextrinoid. The average size range is 7.7-10.5 x 5.9-7.3 μm. Smell: Indistinct or sometimes mushroomy. Taste: Indistinct. When dry the mushroom may discolour tan or brownish and a similar brown colour is seen in caps of aborted mushroom pins which fail to grow.

Sclerotia
One feature of Leucocoprinus birnbaumii which isn't often described but is frequently visible are the sclerotia amongst the mycelium on the surface of the soil, which is an unusual trait amongst members of the Agaricales. Typically sclerotia are most often discussed in the context of truffles or in the challenges faced by attempts at morel cultivation so are usually associated with large, hardened masses growing under the ground. The sclerotia in L. birnbaumii however are tiny, 500-820 μm hard elliptical masses on top of the soil amongst the fibrous mycelium which have been described as whitish-beige or pale yellowish white. These have been shown to be genetically identical to the developed mushroom and have previously been cultured to produce mushrooms by introducing them to a substrate of sterilised wheat chaff before introducing the subsequently developed mycelium to a sand, peat, soil and sphagnum moss mix to ultimately fruit. Whilst L. birnbaumii itself is harmless to plants the sclerotia can have economic impacts on the production and sale of Orchids which often have transparent root pots where the sclerotia can collect. Their presence in these containers can reduce the aesthetic value of the plants and have impacts on the water retention of the substrate. Previous studies have noted an apparent propensity for L. birnbaumii to grow amongst Orchids.

Habitat and distribution
L. flos-sulphuris is scarcely recorded and little known.

Cejp describes it as a tropical species which was introduced to European botanical gardens where it is found growing in old moss, leaf litter and in flower pots, especially orchids.

The specimens studied were found growing individually rather than in clusters in greenhouses near Praque at the Karlovy Vary Botanical Garden where they were growing abundantly on decayed peat and cork which was used as a substrate for orchids. Mattirolo had previously documented the species from orchid greenhouses in Turin, Italy.

Etymology
The specific epithet flos-sulphuris means 'flower of sulphur' in Latin.