Question
Hi,
I was wondering if you have ever come across areas of soft yellow/tan mold-like substances. We have had several large sections grow throughout our mulch. The mulch was laid in March and just in the last few weeks (June 1-now)  these patches have arose. The first was the largest and turned brown when it rain and has slowly gone away. The second was smaller and all the way on the other side of the front yard, and once again turned brown and started to go away when it rained. Today I see the 3rd patch and there has been no rain so it is still fluffy looking and orange/yellow. Do you know what it is and should I be worried? Thanks for your time!

Answer
Hi Jaci, It's a slime mold. It grows on decomposing wood mulch and is quite common.  It doesn't hurt anything unless it's allowed to grow over annuals and shade them out.  Blast it apart with the water hose as soon as you see it start, before it has time to reproduce.  Jim