Mushroom Mandala Coloring Page

This mushroom mandala coloring page starts with an unusual view. The center shows the underside of a cap, with 44 thin gills running out like spokes from a round stem. A skirt of scallops frames that wheel. From there, eight toadstools grow outward with their caps toward the rim. Four have round spots and four have a banded cap with diamonds, and they take turns around the circle. Ferns fill the gaps between them, a beaded ring goes around the outside, and a row of leaves makes the edge. In the corners, more toadstools stand with small ferns, right side up.

It is a detailed sheet for ages 9 and up. Set aside about an hour. The gills go quickly, and the ferns take the most time.

A look under the cap

Most mushroom drawings show the top. Flipping the view is what turns this one into a mandala, because real gills really do fan out in a circle. Look under an open mushroom from the store and you will see the same layout.

Color the gills first. The rhythm is soothing, and in a few minutes you have a bold center that makes the rest of the sheet easier to plan.

Choosing colors for a mushroom mandala coloring page

Storybook red and white is the classic. Our sample pairs it with purple caps, mint green behind the ferns and warm tan gills.

Forest tones make a quieter page. Use rust, olive, moss and cream, and color the caps in soft browns. It looks like a walk in the woods in October.

For a dreamy version, go with pastel caps in pink, lilac and sky blue, on a dark background. Add a soft glow around each cap with pale yellow to get a fairy light feel.

Ways to get a neat finish

• Leave the spots white until last, then shade one edge with pale gray.
• Make the cap darker at the top and lighter near the rim.
• Color fern leaflets with two greens that take turns along the stem.
• Keep stems pale, and add a thin shadow right under the cap.
• Use the same red for all four spotted caps by doing them in one sitting.

Ferns have many small parts. Sharp pencils are a must there, and a fine marker will also work if the paper is thick enough.

What a mushroom really is

KQED, a public media station, has a good short piece on this. A mushroom is only the reproductive part of a much larger living thing. It is attached to an underground network of fine threads called hyphae. Together those threads make up the mycelium, which is the main body of the fungus. Gills on the underside of the cap produce spores, and wind or small animals can carry the spores away. Fungi also feed on dead matter, which makes them important decomposers. Read the piece at KQED Quest.

Try a spore print

Here is a safe kitchen project. Buy a large mushroom from the store and cut off the stem. Set the cap, gills down, on white paper. Cover it with a bowl and leave it overnight. In the morning, lift it away. A pattern of fine lines is left on the paper, and it looks like the wheel at the center of this page. Wash your hands afterward, and never use a wild mushroom unless a real expert has checked it.

Put your print next to the colored sheet and compare the two. Kids can count how many gills fit into one quarter of the circle, then multiply by four to check the total.

More forest fun

After this mushroom mandala coloring page, you may like the single toadstool on our mushroom coloring page. The leaf mandala coloring page keeps the same woodland mood.

Questions