On the underside of the cap are closely spaced gills, free from attachment to the stem, and initially white before turning pink as the spores mature.

As they expand, the caps later becoming bell-shaped or convex, and finally nearly flattened in age, attaining a diameter of 5–20 centimetres (2–8 inches).

[4] The gills are crowded close together, free from attachment to the stem, and initially white before turning pinkish as the spores mature.

The universal veil is membranous, often areolate (cracked into irregularly shaped blocks) or scaly, and forms a long, saclike volva that wraps around the base of the stem.

flaviceps is distinguished from the main form by its smaller, bright yellow caps, up to 3.5 cm (1+1⁄2 in) in diameter, and its dirty-white, scaly volva.

palmicola also has a yellow cap and small spores (5.9–7.5 by 4.3–5.4 μm), but can be distinguished from the previous varieties by its distantly spaced gills.

Pleurocystidia (cystidia that occur on the gill face) are usually spindle shaped, but have a widely variable morphology; they are abundant in the hymenium, and have dimensions of 26–122 by 8–57 μm.

[9] Several bioactive secondary metabolites have been isolated and identified from V. bombycina fruit bodies, mycelium, or pure culture.

Some Pluteus species have a general similar appearance, and also produce pinkish to pinkish-brown spore prints, but they lack a volva.

Throughout its taxonomical history, it has been shuffled to several genera, including Pluteus (by Elias Fries in 1836),[14] Volvaria (Paul Kummer, 1871),[15] and Volvariopsis (William Alphonso Murrill, 1911).

[7] The root for the generic name Volvariella (as well as Volvaria and Volvariopsis, genera in which the species had been formerly placed) derives from the Latin volva, meaning "wrapper" or "a covering".

[22] Fruit bodies grow singly or in small groups on trunks and decayed stumps of dead hardwoods.

They have been called "excellent",[33] "tasty" with a "modest and pleasant flavor",[34] and "worth eating if found in large enough quantities".