If you haven't got this question from a friend or neighbor, it will likely come. Maybe you've had this unusual thing in your own yard. Last August, I saw a posting on our neighborhood social media, asking everyone what to do about this creepy invasion. By the time I saw the posting, there were already 20 responses, all stating to spray it with chemicals including fungicides, insecticides & bleach, and suggestions to combine some of them in a cocktail. I quietly sent her a private message asking her not to do any of those things, and offered to help, Here's what I saw when I got there.

Photo by D.Bellamy: Slime mold in a local garden Fuligo septica., 09-2021

Despite the name, Slime mold is not a fungus, Slime mold (or slime mold) is a common name used on a group of primitive organisms, formerly placed in the kingdom Fungi, but now moved to the kingdom Protista. They can live freely as single-celled organisms but will come together in an aggregate to form multicellular reproductive structures, such as the leathery slime oozing across your wood chips.

Since there are over 900 types worldwide, you might see different appearing structures. The second picture is of bright yellow “dog vomit slime mold”, which I did not see, but have heard of locals finding it, too. Slime mold feeds on decaying plant matter, and sometimes on bacteria and fungus that can attack your plants. Many varieties are particularly fond of wood chips. It does not feed on growing plants.

Picture from Wikipedia: Dog Vomit Slime Mold (or Scrambled Eggs Slime Mold), Fuligo septica.

Don't add chemicals to your yard for this. The best way to get rid of this unsightly garden interloper is to manually clean it up, trying to get it all, any little piece you leave can start a new colony. Remember, it only needs one cell to live. If it's growing on wood chip mulch, clean up the bark it is growing on as well. Check the drainage in that area and make sure it's not an area for water to puddle and stagnate.

Lastly, this is not a plant that sends down roots. One of the surprising things, which is not a myth, is that it can move. There are reports of the whole aggregate moving up to two feet per day, It moves move with amoeba-like gliding motility. So, if you cannot believe your eyes and the patch of slime mold seems to be migrating,