Part 10
Cuticle of the pileus never moist or viscid; torn into downy or floccose scales. Flesh soft, not water-soaked; margin involute and slightly downy at first.
* Gills not changing color, nor spotted with red or black.
** Gills becoming reddish or gray, the edge at last generally with reddish or black spots.
RIGIDA (_rigeo_, to be stiff). Page 74.
Pileus rigid, hard, somewhat cartilaginous when fleshy, very fragile when thin, cuticle rigid, granulated or broken up when dry into smooth scales, not torn into fibrils. Young specimens occur which are fibrillose from the veil, not from laceration of the cuticle.
* Gills white or pallid, not becoming spotted with red or gray.
** Gills becoming reddish, grayish or spotted.
SERICELLA (_sericeus_, silky). Page 74.
Pileus first slightly silky, soon becoming smooth, very dry, neither moist, viscid, water-soaked, nor distinctly scaly; rather thin, opaque, absorbing moisture, but is the same color as the gills. Stem fibrous, by which the smaller species resembling Collybia may be distinguished.
* Gills broad, rather thick, somewhat distant.
**:sericella2 Gills narrow, thin, crowded.
B. PILEUS EVEN, SMOOTH, NOT DOWNY NOR SCALY, NOT VISCID.
In rainy weather moist; when very young pruinose (but rarely conspicuously) from the universal veil. Flesh soft and spongy or very thin when it is water-soaked.
GUTTATA (_gutta_, a drop). Page 76.
Pileus fleshy, soft, fragile, marked with drop-like spots or rivulose. Appearing in spring, rarely in autumn.
Cespitose, in troops or often in rings.
* Gills whitish.
** Gills becoming reddish or smoky-gray.
FIG. PAGE. FIG. PAGE.
1–2. TRICHOLOMA PERSONATUM, 79 5. TRICHOLOMA 68 COLUMBETTA,
3. TRICHOLOMA RUSSULA, 65 6. TRICHOLOMA HUMILE, 81
4. TRICHOLOMA TERREUM, 71
SPONGIOSA (_spongia_, a sponge). Page 78.
Pileus compact, then spongy, obtuse, even, smooth, moist but not hygrophanous; firm, growing in troops late in the autumn. Stem stout, base usually thickened, spongy fibrous. Gills at length decurrent but sinuate, by which character they are distinguished from Clitocybe.
* Gills not discolored.
** Gills discolored.
HYGROPHANA (_Gr._, wet; to appear). Page 80.
Pileus thin, somewhat umbonate; flesh at length soft, watery. Stem rootless, containing a pith, entirely fibrous.
Flesh not exceeding in depth the width of the not broad, thin gills; thinnest toward the margin, hence somewhat umbonate. Color of the pileus either moist or dry, very variable in the same species. Pileus sometimes pulverulent from the persistence of the veil in dry weather.
* Gills whitish, not spotted.
** Gills more or less violet, gray or smoky. Not represented.
_Series A._
PILEUS VISCID OR FIBRILLOSE, DOWNY OR SCALY.
I.—LIMA´CINA. Viscous when moist.
* _Gills not becoming discolored, nor becoming reddish._
=T. eques´tre= Linn.—_equestre_, belonging to a horseman or knight, from distinguished appearance. =Pileus= fleshy, compact, convex becoming expanded, obtuse, pale-yellowish, more or less reddish tinged, the disk and central scales often darker, the margin naked, often wavy. =Flesh= white or tinged with yellow. =Gills= rounded behind, close, nearly free, _sulphur-yellow_. =Stem= stout, solid, pale-yellow or white, white within. =Spores= 6.5–8×4–5µ.
=Pileus= 3–5 in. broad. =Stem= 1–2 in. long, 6–10 lines thick.
Pine woods, especially in sandy soil. Albany county. September to November.
This is a noble species but not plentiful in our state (N.Y.). The pileus is said to become greenish very late in the season. The stem, in the typical form, is described as sulphur-yellow in color, but with us it is more often white. The scales of the disk are sometimes wanting. In our plant the taste is slightly farinaceous at first, but it is soon unpleasant.
Var. _pinastreti_ A. and S. is a slender form having a thin, even pileus, thinner and more narrow gills and a more slender stem. A. crassus Scop., A. aureus Schaeff., and A. flavovirens Pers. are recorded as synonyms of this species. _Peck_, 44th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
Professor Peck later says in “Mushrooms and Their Use,” p. 52: “I confidently add it to the list of edible species.”
New Jersey, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. In pine forests and groves. September to frost. _McIlvaine._
I have eaten it since 1883. All disagreeable odor about T. equestre (which I have seldom noticed) disappears upon cooking. The substance is rather tough, but good.
=T. coryphæ´um= Fr.—chief, leader. From its distinguished appearance. =Pileus= very fleshy but not compact, convex then plane, obtuse, viscid, yellowish, streaked with small brownish scales. =Stem= solid, attenuated upward. =Gills= emarginate, crowded, white, edge yellow.
Large and of striking appearance. In shady beech woods.
Pronounced a good edible by the Boston Myc. Club.
The color of the plants is given as greenish-yellow. Bull. Boston Myc. Club, 1896.
=T. ustale= Fr.—_uro_, to burn. =Pileus= fleshy, convex, then plane, obtuse, even, smooth, viscid, bay-brownish. =Stem= stuffed, equal, dry, rufo-fibrillose, apex naked, silky, nearly smooth. =Gills= emarginate, crowded, white, at length with reddish spots. _Cooke._
Chiefly in pine woods.
=Pileus= 3 in. =Stem= 2–3 in. long, about ½ in. thick.
=Spores= 5×8µ _W.G.S._; 7–8×5µ _Massee_.
North Carolina, _Curtis_, pine woods, _Schweinitz_; Kansas, _Cragin_. Massachusetts. Edible. Boston Myc. Club, Bull. No. 5.
=T. resplen´dens= Fr.—shining brightly. =Pileus= fleshy, convex then nearly plane, even, bare, _viscid, white_, sometimes hyaline-spotted or yellowish on the disk, shining when dry, the _margin straight_. =Flesh= white, taste mild, odor pleasant. =Gills= nearly free when young, then emarginate, somewhat crowded, rather thick, entire, white. =Stem= _solid_, bare, subbulbous, even, dry, white. =Spores= 8×4µ.
=Pileus= 2–4 in. broad. =Stem= 2–3 in. long, 4–8 lines thick.
Thin woods. Catskill mountains. September. _Peck_, 44th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
Mt. Gretna, Pa., in mixed woods. October and November. _McIlvaine._
It is of excellent flavor, consistency and food value.
=T. transmu´tans= Pk.—changing. =Pileus= convex, _nearly bare_, viscid when moist, brownish, reddish-brown or tawny-red, usually paler on the margin. =Flesh= white, taste and odor farinaceous. =Gills= narrow, close, sometimes branched, whitish or pale yellowish, becoming dingy or reddish-spotted when old. =Stem= equal or slightly tapering upward, _bare_ or slightly silky-fibrillose, stuffed or hollow, whitish, often marked with reddish stains or becoming reddish-brown toward the base, white within. =Spores= subglobose, 5µ.
=Pileus= 2–4 in. broad. =Stem= 3–4 in. long, 3–6 lines thick.
Woods. The plants are often cespitose.
I suspect that Agaricus frumentaceus of Curtis’s catalogue belongs to this species. Both the pileus and stem, as well as the gills, are apt to assume darker hues with age or in drying, and this character suggested the specific name. The species is classed as edible. _Peck_, 44th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
Curtis catalogues T. frumentaceum as edible.
T. transmutans is reported from many states. It has a mealy taste and odor. Wherever it is found it is a valuable food species.
=T. sejunc´tum= Sow.—separated; from the peculiar manner in which the gills separate from the stem. =Pileus= fleshy, convex then expanded, umbonate, slightly viscid, _streaked with innate brown or blackish fibrils_, whitish or yellowish, sometimes greenish-yellow. =Flesh= white, fragile. =Gills= _broad, subdistant_, rounded behind or emarginate, white. =Stem= solid, stout, often irregular, white. =Spores= subglobose, 6.5µ.
=Pileus= 1–3 in. broad. =Stem= 1–3 in. long, 4–8 lines thick.
Mixed woods. Suffolk county, N.Y. September.
The plants referred to this species are not uncommon on Long Island, growing on sandy soil in woods of oak and pine. They are usually more or less irregular and the pileus becomes fragile. It is quite variable in color, sometimes approaching a smoky-brown hue, again being nearly white. The taste of the typical form is said to be bitter, but the flavor of our plant is scarcely bitter. In other respects, however, it agrees well with the description of the species. _Peck_, 44th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
=Spores= 6µ. _W.G.S._
Flesh is tender. Cooked, of good body and peculiar but pleasant flavor. A valuable species, baked, scalloped, fried.
=T. terri´ferum= Pk.—_terra_, earth; _fero_, to bear. =Pileus= broadly convex or nearly plane, irregular, often wavy on the margin, glabrous, viscid, _pale-yellow_, generally soiled with adhering particles of earth carried up in its growth. =Flesh= white, with no decided odor. =Gills= thin, crowded, slightly adnexed, white, not spotted or changeable. =Stem= equal, short, solid, white, _floccose-squamulose at the apex_. =Spores= minute, subglobose, 3µ.
=Pileus= 3–4 in. broad. =Stem= 1–1.5 in. long, 6–8 lines thick.
Woods. Catskill mountains. September. _Peck_, 44th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
Found in West Virginia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey. August to frost. _McIlvaine._
Not inviting, hard to clean, nevertheless edible and good.
=T. portento´sum= Fr.—_portentosus_, strange, monstrous. =Pileus= 3–5 in. broad, _sooty_, livid, sometimes violaceous, fleshy, but thin in comparison with the stoutness of the stem, convexo-plane, somewhat umbonate, unequal and turned up, viscid, _streaked with black lines_ (innate fibrils), but otherwise even and smooth, the very thin margin naked. =Flesh= not compact, white, fragile. =Stem= commonly 3 in. often 4–6 in. long, 1 in. thick, stout, _solid_, the whole remarkably fibrous-fleshy, somewhat equal, _naked_, but _fibrilloso-striate_, white; the base, which is occasionally attenuato-rooted, villous. =Gills= rounded, almost free, 3–4 lines to as much as 1 in. broad, _distant, white_, but varying, becoming pale-gray or yellow. _Fries._
=Spores= 4–5×4µ _K._; 5×4µ _W.G.S_
West Virginia, 1882; New Jersey, Pennsylvania, in woods and open places. May to November. _McIlvaine._
It is one of the first toadstools I experimented upon. I have been constant to it. Its caps fried in butter are unsurpassed.
** _Gills discolored, usually spotted with reddish-brown._
=T. fla´vo-brun´neum= Fr.—_flavus_, yellow; _brunneus_, brown. =Pileus= fleshy, conical, then convex, at length expanded, subumbonate, viscid, _clothed with streak-like scales_. =Stem= _hollow, somewhat ventricose_, fibrillose, _at first viscid, yellowish within_, tip naked. =Gills= emarginate, _decurrent_, crowded, yellowish, then reddish. _Fries._
Odor that of new meal. =Stem= 3–5 in. long, ½ in. thick, dull-reddish or brownish. =Pileus= 3–6 in. broad, disk darker, dingy dull-red or reddish-brown.
North Carolina, _Curtis_; damp woods, A. fulvus, _Schweinitz_.
Edible, _Cooke_, 1891.
=T. rus´sula= Schaeff.—reddish. (Plate XVIII, fig. 3, p. 60.) =Pileus= fleshy, convex, becoming plane or centrally depressed, obtuse, viscid, even or dotted with granular squamules on the disk, _red or incarnate_, the margin usually paler, involute and minutely downy in the young plant. =Flesh= white, sometimes tinged with red, taste mild. =Gills= sub-distant, rounded behind or subdecurrent, white, often becoming red-spotted with age. =Stem= solid, firm, whitish or rose-red, squamulose at the apex. =Spores= elliptical, 7×4µ.
=Pileus= 3–5 in. broad. =Stem= 1–2 in. long, 6–8 lines thick.
Mixed woods. Albany. Cattaraugus and Steuben counties. September and October.
According to the description the typical plant has the pileus incarnate and the stem rosy-red, but in the American plant the pileus is generally more clearly red and the stem white, though this is often varied by reddish stains. _Peck_, 44th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
Mixed woods. August until after frost. At Mt. Gretna, Pa. 1897–1898 the patches were large, generous yielders.
Edible, _Cooke_; edible, _Cordier_, _Roques_.
T. russula is a dressy fungus and has a fashion of its own. The mottlings upon its cap, gill and stem, in shades of red, subdued though they be, give it a handsome personality distinct from any other.
The species is a variable one in its minor markings. When moisture is prevalent the caps of all are viscid. Both young and old are often cracked. Stems frequently not squamulose at apex, frequently rosy when young, often flattened. The fibrous interior of the stem and its fibrous connection with the flesh of the cap are very marked. Gills emarginate in youth as well as in age. It is solitary, gregarious, occasionally bunched.
An excellent fungus, a free late grower, meaty, easily cooked, and of fine flavor.
=T. frumenta´ceum= Bull.—_frumentum_, made of corn. =Pileus= 2–3 in. broad, whitish or clay-color and variegated dull red, truly fleshy, convex then plane, obtuse, viscous, dry in fine weather, _even, smooth_. =Flesh= white. =Stem= 3 in. long, ½ in. thick, _solid, equal, fibrillose_ when dry, whitish. =Gills= _rounded_, somewhat crowded, rather broad, white, at length spotted-red.
Wholly _becoming pale white_, but the stem and pileus are alike _marked-red_, and the gills are at length reddish, wherefore, as well as for the _strong smell of new meal_, it is undoubtedly nearest to A. pessundatus. When full grown it has all the appearance of Entoloma. On the ground. _Stevenson._
=Spores= 6µ _W.G.S._
North Carolina, _Curtis_. Edible. Porcher says Dr. Curtis was the first to declare it edible.
=T. pessunda´tum= Fr.—_pessum dare_, bent downward. =Pileus= fleshy, compact, convex, very obtuse, repand, viscid, _granulose or spotted_. =Stem= solid, firm, at first ovato-bulbous, _everywhere villose with whitish scales_. =Gills= emarginate, nearly free, crowded, white, at length spotted with red.
In pine woods. Odor and taste mealy.
=Pileus= bay, reddish, paler at the margin. Stature of Ag. equestris. _Fries._
=Spores= 5×2.5µ Massee; very minute, globose, 2–3µ _C.B.P._
Reckoned edible, but very rare. _Stevenson._
California, _H. and M._
II.—GENUI´NA. Cuticle of pileus torn into downy or fibrillose scales.
* _Gills not changing color nor becoming spotted._
(Plate XX.)
=T. decoro´sum= Pk.—_decorus_, decorous. =Pileus= firm, at first hemispherical, then convex or nearly plane, adorned with numerous _brownish sub-squarrose tomentose scales_, dull ochraceous or tawny. =Flesh= white. =Gills= close, rounded and slightly emarginate behind, the edge slightly scalloped. =Stem= solid, equal or slightly tapering upward, white and smooth at the top, elsewhere _tomentose-scaly_ and colored like the pileus. =Spores= broadly elliptical, 5×4µ.
=Pileus= 1–2 in. broad. =Stem= 2–4 in. long, 2–4 lines thick.
Decaying trunks of trees. Catskill mountains and Alleghany county. September and October.
A rare but beautiful species. It is often cespitose. It departs from the character of the genus in growing on decaying wood. _Peck_, 44th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
Tricholoma decorosum is not rare in Pennsylvania. I have found it at Angora, Philadelphia and in Chester county, Pa., growing in clusters and singly. At first sight one might take it for one of the many forms of Armillaria, but even cursory examination shows the difference.
It is of good consistency and flavor, having a decided mushroom taste.
=T. flaves´cens= Pk.—pale yellow. =Pileus= convex, firm, often irregular, dry, _slightly silky becoming bare_, sometimes cracking into minute scales on the disk, _whitish or pale yellow_. =Flesh= whitish or yellowish. =Gills= close, white or pale-yellow, emarginate, floccose on the edge. =Stems= firm, solid, often unequal, central or sometimes eccentric, single or cespitose, colored like the pileus. =Spores= subglobose, 5µ in diameter.
=Pileus= 2–3 in. broad. =Stem= 1–2.5 in. long, 4–6 lines thick.
Pine stumps. Albany and Rensselaer counties. October.
The species seems to be related to T. rutilans but has not the red or purplish tomentum of that fungus. It, like T. decorosum, is always lignicolous. T. rutilans is sometimes so. _Peck_, 44th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
Frequently found in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Pine stumps. September to frost. _McIlvaine._
The flesh compares with that of T. rutilans, and makes an equally good dish.
=T. gran´de= Pk. =Pileus= thick, firm, hemispherical, becoming convex, often irregular, dry, _scaly_, somewhat silky-fibrillose toward the margin, _white_, the margin at first involute. =Flesh= grayish-white, taste _farinaceous_. =Gills= close, rounded behind, adnexed, white. =Stem= stout, solid, fibrillose, at first tapering upward, then equal or but slightly thickened at the base, pure white. =Spores= elliptical, 9–11×6µ.
=Pileus= 4–5 in. broad. =Stem= 2–4 in. long, 1–1.5 in. thick.
Among fallen leaves in woods. Cattaraugus county. September.
The plants are often cespitose, and then the pileus is more or less irregular and the gills somewhat lacerated. The species is related to T. columbetta, from which its larger size, constantly scaly pileus, more cespitose mode of growth, larger spores and farinaceous taste separate it. The scales of the pileus are brownish, and the pileus itself is sometimes slightly dingy on the disk. The young margin is pure white like the stem, and both it and the upper part of the stem are sometimes studded with drops of moisture.
The plant was found on trial to be edible, but not of first quality. The flesh is not very tender, nor the flavor captivating even in young specimens. _Peck_, 44th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
Mt. Gretna, Pa. Mixed woods. August to frost. _McIlvaine._
Gross when old. Young specimens of medium quality and flavor.
=T. columbet´ta= Fr.—_columba_, a pigeon. (Plate XVIII, fig. 5, p. 60.) =Pileus= convex, then nearly plane, fleshy, obtuse, rigid, somewhat flexuous, dry, _at first bare, then silky-fibrillose_, becoming even or scaly, _white_, the margin at first _involute_, more or less tomentose. =Flesh= white, taste _mild_. =Gills= close, emarginate, thin, white. =Stem= stout, solid, unequal, nearly bare, white. =Spores= 7–8×4.5µ.
The species is very variable and the following varieties have been described:
Var. _A_. =Pileus= nearly always repand or lobed, at first bare, even, at length cracked-scaly, often reddish spotted, the margin when young inflexed, tomentose. =Stem= obese, even, unequal, swollen, an inch thick. The typical form.
Birch wood among mosses.
Var. _B_. =Pileus= subflexuous, silky-fibrillose, at length scaly, sometimes dingy-brown spotted, the margin scarcely tomentose. =Stem= longer, equal or slightly narrowed at the base.
Bushy places. Intermediate between _A_ and _C_.
Var. _C_. =Pileus= regular, flattened, evidently fibrillose, sometimes spotted with blue, four inches broad. =Stem= equal, cylindrical, fibrillose-striate, four inches long.
Beech woods. A showy variety so diverse from variety _A_ that it might be regarded as a distinct species, did not variety _B_ connect them, and so much resemble both that it might with equal propriety be referred to either.
=Pileus= 2–4 in. broad. =Stem= 1–4 in. long, 3–12 lines thick.
Woods and pastures. Albany county, N.Y.
It may be distinguished from T. album by its mild taste. It is recorded as edible. _Peck_, 44th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
Edible, _Curtis_, _Cooke_, _Stevenson_.
This much varied Tricholoma is as varied in its habitat. I have found it on vacant lots in Philadelphia, in mixed woods at Devon, Pa., and in the forests of the West Virginia mountains, and eaten it since 1881.
It cooks readily and is of mild, agreeable flavor.
=T. ru´tilans= Schaeff.—_rutilo_, to be reddish. =Pileus= fleshy, campanulate becoming plane, dry, at first _covered with a dark-red or purplish tomentum_ then somewhat scaly, the margin thin, at first involute. =Flesh= yellow. =Gills= crowded, rounded, _yellow, thickened and downy on the edge_. =Stem= somewhat hollow, nearly equal or slightly thickened or bulbous at the base, soft, pale-yellow variegated with red or purplish floccose scales. =Spores= 6.5–8×6.5µ.
(Plate XXI.)
=Pileus= 2–4 in. broad. =Stem= 2–4 in. long, 5–8 lines thick.
On or about pine stumps, rarely on hemlock trunks. July to November. _Peck_, 44th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
=Spores= subglobose, 5–6µ diameter _Massee_; 6–8×6µ _B_.; 6×9µ _W.G.S._
West Virginia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey. May to November. _McIlvaine._
Quite common in West Virginia mountains and in pine woods of New Jersey. The Boston Mycological Club reports it found in quantity in Massachusetts. The flesh when cooked is gummy, like the marshmallow confection. It is excellent.
** _Gills becoming reddish or gray, etc._
=T. vacci´num= Pers.—_vacca_, a cow. =Pileus= fleshy, convex or campanulate, becoming nearly plane, umbonate, dry, floccose-scaly, reddish-brown, the margin _involute, tomentose_. =Flesh= white. =Gills= adnexed, subdistant, whitish, then reddish or reddish-spotted. =Stem= equal, _hollow_, covered with a fibrillose bark, naked at the apex, pale reddish.
=Spores= subglobose, 6µ.
=Pileus= 1–3 in. broad. =Stem= 2–3 in. long, 4–6 lines thick.
Under or near coniferous trees. Greene and Essex counties. September and October. _Peck_, 44th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
Recorded as edible by Gillet.
Plentiful in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West Virginia. Have eaten it since 1885. Fair.
=T. fuligi´neum= Pk.—_fuligineus_, resembling soot. =Pileus= convex or nearly plane, obtuse, often irregular, dry, minutely scaly, _sooty-brown_. =Flesh= grayish, odor and taste farinaceous. =Gills= subdistant, uneven on the edge, ash-colored _becoming blackish in drying_. =Stem= short, _solid_, equal, bare, ash-colored. =Spores= oblong-elliptical, 8×4µ.
=Pileus= 1–2.5 in. broad. =Stem= 1–1.5 in. long, 3–5 lines thick.
Among mosses in open places. Greene county. September. Rare. _Peck_, 44th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
Quite common in Pennsylvania and New Jersey on mossy wood margins. It is of fair quality and flavor.
(Plate XXII.)
=T. ter´reum= Schaeff.—the earth. (Plate XVIII, fig. 4, p. 60.) =Pileus= fleshy, thin, soft, convex, campanulate or nearly plane, obtuse or umbonate, _innately fibrillose or floccose-scaly_, ashy-brown, grayish-brown or mouse color. =Flesh= white or whitish. =Gills= adnexed, subdistant, more or less eroded on the edge, _white becoming ash-colored_. =Stem= equal, varying from solid to stuffed or hollow, fibrillose, white or whitish. =Spores= broadly elliptical, 6–7×4–5µ.
=Pileus= 1–3 in. broad.= Stem= 1–2 in. long, 2–4 lines thick.
Woods. Albany, Rensselaer and Cattaraugus counties. September to November. _Peck_, 44th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
=Spores= 7×5.5µ _Morgan_; 5–6µ, _Massee_; 6–7×4µ _K._; 6µ _W.G.S._
Eaten by Professor Peck. Eaten by McIlvaine. Quality fair.
=T. ter´reum= Schaeff.—var. _fra´grans_ Pk. =Pileus= convex or nearly plane, dry, innately-fibrillose or minutely floccose-scaly, grayish-brown or blackish-brown. =Gills= rather broad, adnexed, whitish or ash-colored. =Stem= equal, solid or stuffed, rarely hollow, whitish. =Spores= broadly elliptical, 6–7×4–5µ.