251. Common Dung Cup

This fungus is a by product of our quest for garlic self-sufficiency.  Last October we heavily augmented the soil in our garlic bed with horse manure from one of the local stables, and over the last couple of weeks the enriched ground has produced a fine crop of Common Dung Cups (Peziza vesiculosa).  It is a common mushroom of stables and heavily manured gardens.  It is a large fungus, as far as cup fungi go, up to 10 cm across.  Ours are a dark tan, but the species in general varies from a light buff to brown.