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Can you eat the mushrooms growing out of your bathroom ceiling?
By
Rosemary Misdary
Published Oct 30, 2026 at 6:00 a.m. ET
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Daniel Moyer
By
Rosemary Misdary
Published Oct 30, 2026 at 6:00 a.m. ET
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Mushrooms growing from a water-damaged wall or ceiling are one of the more maddening indignities of New York City living. Your apartment is so moist that organic life is sprouting from the walls.
But if you’ve ever gazed at the inky caps and wondered whether they’re edible, we’re here to help. No, you shouldn't eat them.
“You definitely shouldn't eat mushrooms that grow in most places in your house,” said Ethan Crenson, president of the New York Mycological Society. "Because mushrooms can accumulate environmental pollutants, you probably shouldn't eat mushrooms that grow in most places in your house.”
The most common mushrooms growing out of the ceilings and walls in New York City apartments are the Coprinellus domesticus variety. The fungus is non-toxic, according to the New York Mycological Society, but the sight of the coin-sized caps curling out of a wall gives a home dystopian “The Last of Us” decor.
Experts describe the ceiling shrooms' flavor as indistinct and not worth tossing into a risotto. They aren’t edible or tasty, and could cause indigestion or diarrhea.
Greenpoint resident Daniel Moyer knows the mental torment that a mushroom in the ceiling can bring. A friend suggested he eat the 2-inch mushroom growing above the shower in his apartment. Moyer rejected the idea — the mushroom was its own bad trip, and he wanted it gone.
“One evening we came home, and there was sort of a bulbous, unidentifiable thing coming from the corner, and we didn't know what it was,” said Moyer, co-owner of Daniel/Oliver Gallery. “ It's, like, total horror. What Lovecraftian nightmare is under the ceiling?”
The cause was an ongoing leak that has since been fixed, and the mushrooms have not returned.
A mushroom home invasion is a bad omen for a renter, a sign of serious leaks and rotting wood.
Just like the mushroom growing above Moyer’s shower, they’re often found in bathroom walls and ceilings. But they can thrive on walls, ceilings and floors anywhere in a home with moisture problems.
“Anywhere where there's wetness and wood, a fungus might think their next meal will come from, and if your building has a moisture problem, that might then attract fungi,” said Sigrid Jakob, the mycological society’s former president.
The mushrooms pose no serious health concerns, though the spores they release for reproduction may cause mild discomfort, according to Bob Cummings, a botany teacher at the Santa Barbara City College.
In addition to Coprinellus domesticus, New Yorkers may find other mushroom varieties, including oyster mushrooms. In most cases, the provenance of the shroom in your apartment will likely remain a mystery: Only a DNA lab analysis can confirm the true identity of a mushroom.
The only real solution to a mushroom home invasion is eliminating the source of the moisture and removing the affected wood.
“Fungus will no doubt eventually cause serious structural damage to the building,” Cummings wrote on the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History site.
Residents who find mushrooms growing in their homes should report it to their landlords or 311.
“If you have mushrooms, you almost certainly have mold,” said Andrew Stern, the city’s housing department's press secretary. “And mold is definitely a violation.”
Stephen Brown/Gothamist
The mushroom in Moyer’s apartment is now only a memory. But it is a lasting one. When he married his partner this past August, they surprised each other by both referencing the incident in their vows.
“We both mentioned it, in terms of these things are going to sprout up out of nowhere,” Moyer said. “You just have to kind of laugh at them, and that's what life is.”
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Rosemary Misdary
Rosemary is health & science reporter. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or Signal 646-544-9524.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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