Hyphae are cylindrical, thread-like tubes adapted for penetrating various substrates from wood, to insect skeletons, to skin to plant roots. It is not uncommon to see mushrooms emerge from black asphalt.

They grow from the hyphal tip which elongates and branches as it produces enzymes that break down, digest and then absorb carbon food sources which it may share with surrounding plants. They can take up an enormous volume of space. Armillaria solidipes extends over a 3.5 square miles.

Fairy rings grow outward in a circle and are stopped only by something in its way, including possibly another fairy ring. They can grow as large as 30 feet in diameter. A ring formed by the species Clitocybe geotropa is a half-mile in diameter and is believed to be around 700 years old. As the grow they secrete chemicals that break down organic matter and release nutrients which it absorbs as food.