Summary:
Gymnopilus liquiritiae is a member of Arora''s Gymnopilus sapineus group. Distinguishing features of Gymnopilus liquiritiae according to Hesler(2) include a bald, striate, distinctly colored cap, orange to tawny flesh, yellow gills, lack of a veil, and caulocystidia in tufts. The description is derived from Hesler(2) except where noted.

Cap:
2-8cm across, convex then flattening, sometimes somewhat umbonate, (according to Schalkwijk-Barendsen fitting into available space because of close proximity); fulvous, "ochraceous-buff", "ochraceous-tawny", "ochraceous orange", "zinc-orange", or "Kaiser brown", disc often "tawny", (according to Schalkwijk-Barendsen pale yellow orange at first, later orange brown); not viscid; bald or with minute, brown, waxy dots, margin becoming striate

Flesh:
pale orange to tawny-yellow

Gills:
adnate then adnexed, seceding, close or crowded, broad to medium broad; "ochraceous-buff" to "light orange yellow", finally "ochraceous orange" to "ochraceous tawny" to "zinc-orange", at times reddish-brown spotted; edges fimbriate [fringed], (Hesler), adnate-serrate, close, relatively broad, many subgills; "pale buff orange at first, then orange brown", becoming spotty, (Schalkwijk-Barendsen)

Stem:
(1)3-7cm x (0.2)0.3-0.8(1)cm, often off-center, widening upward or widening downward, hollow; pallid or dingy orange, top whitish or yellowish scurfy; fibrillose to subglabrous [more or less bald]

Veil:
absent

Odor:
"mild, or slightly aromatic, fragrant, or of raw potatoes"

Taste:
bitter

Microscopic spores:
spores 7-8.5(10) x 4-5.5 microns, elliptic, verruculose [finely warty], "no germ pore, ferruginous in KOH, dextrinoid"; basidia 4-spored, (20)25-32 x 4-6 microns; pleurocystidia inconspicuous, 20-30 x 4-7 microns, "clavate, cylindric, or subventricose, capitate to non-capitate"; cheilocystidia 20-40 x 3-6 microns, "flask-shaped, capitate or non-capitate"; pileocystidia 32-54 x 3-6 microns, clavate to cylindric; caulocystidia often in tufts, 27-48(105) x 3-7 microns, filamentous or ventricose; yellow pigment, soluble in KOH, present in gill trama; clamp connections present

Spore deposit:
"raw sienna" to "antique brown"

Notes:
Collections were examined from OR, ID, CA, FL, ME, MI, NC, NH, NM, NY, TN, VT, WY, and Sweden, (Hesler), and reported from BC (in Redhead(5)) and AB (Schalkwijk-Barendsen).

EDIBILITY

Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Fulvidula liquiritiae (Pers. ex Fr.) Romagn.