or nearly plane, even, glabrous, white or whitish, sometimes varied with
reddish spots or stains. =Flesh= white. =Gills= narrow, crowded,
adnexed, sometimes nearly or quite free, white or whitish. =Stem=
generally stout, firm, equal or slightly swollen in the middle, striate,
white, stuffed or sometimes hollow, commonly narrowed at the base,
rooting, often curved at the base, rarely slightly thickened and blunt.
=Spores= subglobose, 4–6µ broad, sometimes showing a slight point at one
end.
=Pileus= 2–4 in. broad. =Stem= 2–4 in. long, 3–6 lines thick.
Var. _immacula´ta_ Cke. This differs from the type in having no reddish
spots or stains.
This species is easily recognized by its large size, firm or compact
substance and white color. It grows in soil filled with decaying
vegetable matter or on much decayed wood. _Peck_, 49th Rep. N.Y. State
Bot.
West Philadelphia, Pa. Weed grown lot near University of Pennsylvania.
September to frost. Grew gregariously over a large lot. The plants
varied greatly in size and appearance. The gills of most were crenulate
(scalloped). Assorted specimens were sent Professor Peck who wrote:
“They are all forms of C. maculata.”
The caps were stewed and eaten in abundance by many, and pronounced
“Fine.”
(Plate XXX.)
[Illustration: COLLYBIA BUTYRACEA.]
=C. butyra´cea= Bull.—_butyrum_, butter; buttery to the touch. =Pileus=
2–3 in. broad, normally _reddish-brown_, but becoming pale, fleshy,
convex then expanded, more or less _umbonate_, dry, _even_, smooth.
=Flesh= buttery, soft, somewhat hygrophanous, flesh-color then white.
=Stem= 2–3 in. long, _attenuated_ upward from the thickened white downy
base, hence much thinner at the apex, 2–3 lines only, but at the base
½-1 in. thick, externally covered over with a _rigid cartilaginous
cuticle_, internally stuffed with soft _spongy pith_, or hollow only
when old, _striate, reddish_, commonly smooth, but varying with white
deciduous scales, and occasionally wholly downy with soft hairs. =Gills=
slightly adnexed, _somewhat free_, thin, _crowded_, notched at the edge,
white, _never spotted-reddish_. _Stevenson._
=Spores= 6–10×3–5µ _B._; elliptical, 7–9×4–5µ.
=Cap= greasy looking. =Umbo= dark.
The color of the cap is variable. The species differs from C. dryophila
in having an umbonate pileus, slightly uneven gill-edges and stem which
tapers upward.
Solitary and in troops under coniferous trees. Spring, autumn.
West Virginia, Chester county and Eagle’s Mere, Pa., _McIlvaine_.
The caps cook quickly, are tender and have a good flavor.
VESTI´PEDES.
* _Gills broad, rather distant._
(Plate XXIX_b_.)
[Illustration:
COLLYBIA VELUTIPES.
Natural size.
]
=C. velu´tipes= Curt.—_velutum_, velvet; _pes_, a foot. =Pileus= 1–4 in.
broad in the same cluster, _tawny_, sometimes paler at the margin,
moderately fleshy at the disk, but thin at the circumference, convex
then soon becoming plane, often eccentric, irregular and bent backward,
smooth, _viscous_; margin spreading and at length slightly striate.
=Flesh= watery, soft, slightly tawny-hyaline. =Stem= 1–3 in. long, 1–4
lines thick, tough, externally cartilaginous, _umber then becoming
black, densely, minutely velvety_, commonly ascending or twisted,
commonly equal, even, internally fibrous-stuffed and hollow. =Gills=
broader and rounded behind, slightly adnexed, so as at first sight to
appear free, _somewhat distant_, very unequal, _becoming pallid-yellow
or tawny_. _Fr._
=Spores= ellipsoid, 7µ _W.G.S._; 6×4µ _B._; elliptical, 7×3–3.5µ
_Massee_.
Our American plant, common to the states, is rarely found attaining such
dimensions. Its usual size is from 1–2 in. across, more frequently at
1–1¼. It is generally found in clusters more or less dense. The color
varies from yellowish to a dark yellowish-brown. The center is darker
than the margin. The cap viscid when moist, often irregular from
crowding. Gills may be rounded or notched at their attachment to the
stem, whitish or yellowish. Stem usually hollow, 1–4 in. long, 1–3 lines
thick, whitish when young becoming colored with the dense brownish
velvety hairs.
It grows on stumps, roots in the ground, trunks and earth heavily
charged with wood matter. I have found it in every month of the year.
The heavier crop appears in September, October and November, and lasts
until long after heavy frosts. Then sporadic clusters spring up wherever
the winter sun gives them encouragement.
It sometimes does considerable damage to the tree so unfortunate as to
be its host. It begins its growth upon some injured or decayed spot and
by continually insinuating itself under the surrounding bark it, by its
mycelium and growth, pries the bark away from the wood until the tree is
entirely denuded.
It is a valuable species, not only on account of its continuous growth,
but because of its plentifulness and excellent substance.
** _Gills very narrow, closely crowded._
=C. con´fluens= Pers.—=Pileus= ¾-1½ in. broad, thin, tough, flaccid,
convex or nearly plane, obtuse, rarely somewhat umbonate, glabrous,
hygrophanous, reddish grayish-red or reddish-brown and often striatulate
on the margin when moist, pallid, whitish or grayish when dry. =Lamellæ=
narrow, crowded, free, whitish or yellowish-gray. =Stem= 2–5 in. long,
1–2 lines thick, equal, cartilaginous, hollow, clothed with a short
dense somewhat pulverulent whitish pubescence or down. =Spores= minute
ovate or subelliptical, slightly pointed at one end, 5–6×3–4µ.
Among fallen leaves in woods. Common. July to October.
The plants commonly grow in tufts, but sometimes in lines or arcs of
circles or scattered. They revive under the influence of moisture and
thereby indicate an intimate relationship to the genus Marasmius. The
pileus varies much in color, but commonly has a dull reddish or russety
tinge when moist, sometimes approaching bay-red. It fades in drying and
becomes almost white or grayish-white, but sometimes the center remains
more deeply colored than the margin. The stem is commonly rather long in
proportion to the width of the pileus. Occasionally it is somewhat
flattened either at the top or throughout its entire length. Sometimes
the stems become united at the base which union is suggestive of the
specific name. _Peck_, 49th Rep.
West Virginia, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, _McIlvaine_. July to frost.
The caps of C. confluens are of excellent substance and flavor. Their
quantity makes up for their small size. I have gathered them 2 in.
across, but their average size is about 1 in. They dry well.
LÆVI´PEDES.
* _Gills broad, more or less distant._
=C. esculen´ta= Wulf.—_esculent._ =Pileus= ½ in. and more broad,
_ochraceous-clay_, often becoming dusky, _slightly fleshy_, convex then
plane, orbicular, _obtuse_, smooth, even or when old slightly striate.
=Flesh= tough, white, savory. =Stem= 1 in. and more long, scarcely 1
line thick, or thread-like and wholly equal, _obsoletely tubed_, tough,
_stiff and straight_, even, smooth, slightly shining, _clay-yellow_,
with a _long perpendicular_, commonly _smooth_, tail-like _root_.
=Gills= adnexed, even decurrent with a very thin small tooth, then
separating, _very broad_, limber, _somewhat distant, whitish,_ sometimes
clay-color.
Gregarious but never cespitose. The tube of the stem is very narrow.
_Stevenson._
The smallest edible Collybia. _Cooke._ Edible. In dense woods. _Curtis._
It is dried and preserved. _Cordier._
In pastures and grassy places. Spring and early summer.
Edible, but rather bitter flavor. In Austria, where it is in great
plenty in April, large baskets are brought to market under the name of
Nagelschwämme—nail mushrooms.
Professor Peck describes C. esculentoides Pk., 49th Rep. N.Y. State
Bot., which he states: “Differs from the type in its paler and more
ochraceous color and in its farinaceous flavor, and is related to the
European C. esculenta from which it differs essentially in the
umbilicate pileus and in the absence of any radicating base to the
stem.”
** _Gills narrow, crowded._
=C. dryophil´a= Bull. _Gr._—oak-loving. (Plate XXVIII, fig. 3, p. 112.)
=Pileus= 1–3 in. across, bay-brown-rufous, etc., _becoming pale_, but
not hygrophanous, slightly fleshy, tough, convexo-plane, _obtuse,
commonly depressed in the center_, even, smooth; margin at first
inflexed then flattened. =Flesh= thin, white. =Stem= 1–3 in. long, 1–3
lines thick, cartilaginous, _remarkably tubed_, thin, even, smooth,
somewhat rooting, commonly _becoming yellow or reddish_. =Gills=
_somewhat free_, with a small decurrent tooth, but appearing adnexed
when the pileus is depressed, _crowded, narrow_, distinct, plane,
_white_ or becoming pale.
There are numerous monstrous forms which are very deceiving: _a._ =Stem=
elongated, waved, decumbent, inflated at the base; =pileus= broader,
_lobed_; =gills= white. _b._ _Funicularis_, larger, cespitose, the lax
and decumbent =stem= equal and hairy at the base, =gills=
sulphur-yellow. These forms, analagous with A. repens Bull., occur on
heaps of leaves. _c._ Countless specimens growing together in a large
cluster; =stems= thick, inflated, irregularly shaped, _sulcate_, brown,
the mycelium collecting the soil in the form of a ball; =pileus= very
irregularly shaped, full of angles, undulated, blackish then bay-brown.
In gardens. _Stevenson._
=Spores= elliptic-fusiform, 7–8×4µ; 6µ _W.G.S._
Professor Peck, 49th Rep. N.Y. State Bot., gives the following: =Pileus=
thin, convex or nearly plane, sometimes with the margin elevated,
irregular, obtuse, glabrous, varying in color, commonly some shade of
bay-red or tan-color. =Flesh= white. =Lamellæ= narrow, crowded, adnexed
or almost free, white or whitish, rarely yellowish. =Stem= equal or
sometimes thickened at the base, cartilaginous, glabrous, hollow,
yellowish or rufescent, commonly similar in color to the pileus.
=Spores=, 6–8×3–4µ.
=Pileus= 1–2 in. broad. =Stem= 1–2 in. long, 1–2 lines thick.
Woods, groves and open places. Common. June to October.
West Virginia, North Carolina, New Jersey, Pennsylvania. _McIlvaine._
C. dryophila is so common and variable that descriptions would fail to
cover it in its eccentricities. The writer has eaten it in all the forms
obtained since 1881. A very pretty form grew in large quantities among
pine needles at Eagle’s Mere, Pa., in August, 1897. It was cooked and
served at the hotel table. Many ate it and were delighted.
Dr. Badham refers to a case in which illness was caused by eating it. In
my eighteen years' experience with it, knowing it to have been enjoyably
eaten by scores of persons, I have not heard of the slightest discomfort
from it.
=C. spinulif´era= Pk.—_spinula_, a little thorn. =Pileus= fleshy, thin,
convex or nearly plane, glabrous, hygrophanous reddish tan-color tinged
with pink and slightly striatulate on the margin when moist, paler when
dry, adorned with minute colored spinules or setæ. =Gills= narrow,
close, rounded behind and free, pale cinnamon-color, becoming somewhat
darker with age, spinuliferous. =Stem= slender, tough, glabrous,
shining, hollow, reddish-brown, often paler or whitish at the top,
especially in young plants, with a whitish myceloid tomentum at the
base. =Spores= elliptical or nearly so, 4µ.
=Plant= cespitose. =Pileus= 8–16 lines broad. =Stem= 2–3 in. long, about
1 line thick.
Prostrate trunks and ground among leaves in woods. Lewis county.
September.
In this species the lamellæ, under a lens, appear to be minutely
pubescent or velvety. This is due to the colored spinules or setæ which
clothe them. _Peck_, 49th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
Angora, Pa. September, 1897. Among moss in mixed woods. September to
frost. _McIlvaine._
Specimens identified by Professor Peck. Stems of some tapered at base.
Excepting the extreme base of stems the whole plant is tender and of
good flavor.
(Plate XXXI.)
[Illustration: COLLYBIA ACERVATA (young).]
=C. acerva´ta= Fr.—_acervus_, a heap. =Pileus= fleshy but thin, convex
or nearly plane, obtuse, glabrous, hygrophanous, pale tan-color or dingy
pinkish-red and commonly striatulate on the margin when moist, paler or
whitish when dry. =Gills= narrow, close, adnexed or free, whitish or
tinged with flesh-color. =Stem= slender, rigid, hollow, glabrous,
reddish, reddish-brown or brown, often whitish at the top, especially
when young, commonly with a white matted down at the base. =Spores=
elliptical, 6×3–4µ.
=Plant= cespitose. =Pileus= 1–2 in. broad. =Stem= 2–3 in. long, about 1
line thick.
Decaying wood and ground among fallen leaves in woods. Adirondack
mountains. August and September. _Peck_, 49th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
This very pretty plant resembles forms of C. dryophila. The coloring of
the stems is often extremely delicate, like paintings upon rice paper.
West Virginia mountains; Eagle’s Mere, Pa. August to frost. _McIlvaine._
The entire plant is tender, delicate and of fine flavor. In these
qualities it is not distinguishable when cooked from the smaller forms
of C. dryophila.
[Illustration]
MYCE´NA Fr.
_Gr._—a fungus.
(Plate XXXII.)
[Illustration: MYCENA GALERICULATA.]
=Pileus= regular, rarely depressed in the center, thin, usually streaked
with longitudinal lines, at first conico-cylindrical, _margin at the
first straight_, closely embracing the stem which is attenuated upward.
=Stem= hollow, slender, cartilaginous. =Gills= adnate or adnexed,
sometimes with a small tooth, never decurrent. =Spores= white.
Generally small and slender, growing on branches, twigs, heaps of
leaves, sometimes on the ground, some minute species on single dead
leaves. Long, rooting stems are not uncommon. Clitocybe and Omphalia are
separated by their decurrent gills and in Collybia the margin is at
first incurved.
In this genus the species of the various sections are not always
distinguished by single sharply defined characteristics, so that it will
sometimes be necessary to pay attention to all the features. Species
with a thread-like stem are found in other sections than Filipedes and
some of the Lactipedes are slippery when moist, but not truly viscous.
ANALYSIS OF TRIBES.
CALODONTES (_kalos_, beautiful; _odontes_, teeth). Page 126.
Stem juiceless, not dilated into a disk at the base. Edges of gills
darker, minutely toothed.
ADONIDEÆ (_Adonis_, referring to beauty). Page 126.
Stem juiceless, not dilated at the base. Gills of one color, not
changing color. Color pure-colored, bright, not becoming brownish or
gray. On the ground.
RIGIPEDES (rigid-stemmed). Page 126.
Stem firm, rigid, rather tough, juiceless, more or less rooting. Gills
changing color, white, then gray or reddish, generally at length
connected by veins.
Tough, persistent, inodorous, usually on wood, very cespitose, but
individuals of the same species sometimes grow singly on the ground.
FRAGILIPEDES (fragile-stemmed). Page 130.
Stem fragile, juiceless, fibrillose at the base, scarcely rooting.
Pileus hygrophanous. Gills becoming discolored, at length somewhat
connected by veins.
Thin, fragile, often soft, normally growing singly on the ground. A few
strong smelling, cespitose on wood.
FILIPEDES (thread-stemmed). Page 130.
Stem thread-like, flaccid, somewhat tough, rooting, juiceless, generally
extremely long in proportion to the pileus. Gills becoming discolored,
paler at the edge.
Straight, growing singly on the ground; inodorous. Pileus dingy-brown,
becoming paler.
LACTIPEDES (milky-stemmed). Page 130.
Gills and rooting stem milky when broken.
GLUTINIPEDES (glutinous-stemmed). Page 131.
Stem juiceless but externally sticky with gluten. Gills at length
decurrent with a tooth.
BASIPEDES (base-stemmed). Page 131.
Stem dry, rootless, the base naked and dilated into a disk or small
hairy bulb. Growing singly, slender, soon becoming flaccid.
INSITITIÆ (_insero_, to insert or graft). Page 131.
Stem very thin, dry, growing as if inserted in the supporting surface,
not downy, not disk-like at the base.
Gills adnate with a small decurrent tooth. Small, very tender, becoming
flaccid with the first touch of the sun.
Mycena is a large genus composed of small species. About sixty members
have been found in America. They are from ½ to 1 in. across the cap,
with thin stems and altogether delicate appearance. Yet the flesh of
most of them has a gummy consistency in the mouth, and they shrink but
little in stewing. Heretofore not any appear to have been reported as
edible, probably because the size of the species has not attracted
experimenters. While some have a strong odor and taste of radishes, and
one species is bitter, it is probable that all are edible. The writer
has eaten, raw and cooked, small quantities (all he has found) of many
species not here reported as edible, which will, when further tested, be
reported upon.
The substance and flavor of those here given is remarkably pleasant.
Their late coming, hardiness and abundance are commendable qualities.
I.—CALODON´TES. Stem juiceless. Gills minutely toothed.
None tested.
II.—ADONI´DEÆ. Stem juiceless. Gills of one color, etc.
None tested.
III.—RIGIDI´PEDES. Stem rigid. Gills at first white, changing
color, etc.
=M. prolif´era= Sow.—_proles_, offspring; _fero_, to bear. (Plate X,
figs. 6, 7, p. 28.) =Pileus= ⅔-1¼ in. across, slightly fleshy, expanded
bell-shape, dry, the broad umbo darker (dingy-brown), slightly striate,
and at length furrowed or rimosely split at the margin (pale yellowish
or becoming brownish-tan). =Stem= 2½-3 in. long, firm, rigid, _smooth,
shining, slightly striate_, rooted. Gills adnexed, somewhat distinct,
becoming pale white.
Inodorous, only at length nauseous. Very closely allied to M.
galericulata, in habit approaching nearest to M. cohærens. The stems are
pallid at the apex, but slightly tawny-bay-brown below, and glued
together by hairy down at the base. There is a _white_ form with
transparent stem—on trunks. _Fries._
Mt. Gretna, Pa. On ground in grass. Mycelium spreading on leaves.
_McIlvaine._
Found in great plenty. Base of stems is sometimes white when in dense
tufts.
The whole plant is tender, cooking in fifteen minutes, and is of fine
flavor. No one will want a better fungus.
=M. rugo´sa= Fr.—_ruga_, a wrinkle. =Pileus= ash-color but becoming
pale, very tough, slightly fleshy at the disk, otherwise membranaceous,
bell-shaped then expanded, at length rather plane, somewhat obtuse, more
or less corrugated (unequal with elevated wrinkles), always dry, not
moist even in rainy weather, striate at the circumference. =Stem=
commonly short, remarkably cartilaginous, tubed, rigid, tough, straight,
at length compressed, even, smooth, pallid, with a short oblique hairy
root. =Gills= _arcuato-adnate_, with a decurrent tooth, united behind in
a collar, somewhat distant, connected by veins, broad, ventricose, white
then gray, edge sometimes quite entire, sometimes with saw-like teeth.
Always inodorous. Formerly connected with M. galericulata. M. rugosa is
arid, very tough, more rarely cespitose, the pileus firm, somewhat
obtuse, wrinkled but without striæ, the gills arcuato-adnate with a
hooked tooth, _white then ash-color_. The genuine M. galericulata is
fasciculato-cespitose, somewhat fragile, the pileus thinner, at first
conical and umbonate, striate without wrinkles, the gills adnate, with a
decurrent tooth, white then _flesh-color_. Between these there is a long
series of intermediate forms. _Fries._
California, _H. and M._; Kansas, _Cragin_; Wisconsin, _Bundy_; New York,
September, _Peck_, 46th Rep.; West Virginia, New Jersey, Pennsylvania.
On decaying wood and ground near stumps. August to November.
_McIlvaine._
The tenacity frequently occurring in Mycena is well shown in this
species. The caps and stem cook tender, but it is better to discard the
stems, as the two do not become tender at the same time.
=M. galericula´ta= Scop.—_galericulum_, a small peaked cap. (Plate Plate
X, fig. 5, p. 28.) =Pileus= somewhat membranaceous, conical bell-shaped
then expanded, striate to the umbo, dry, smooth, becoming brownish-livid
or changeable in color. =Stem= rigid, _polished, even, smooth_, with a
spindle-shaped root at the base. =Gills= _adnate, decurrent with a
tooth_, connected by veins, whitish and flesh-colored.
Very protean. Normally growing in bunches, the numerous stems (never
sticky) glued together with soft hairy down at the base. But it occurs
also solitary, larger, pileus as much as 2 in. broad, wrinkled-striate.
The essential marks by which it is distinguished from A. rugosa are
these: =Stem= in general thinner, less tense and straight, often curved,
more fragile. =Pileus= membranaceous, conico bell-shaped, umbonate,
striate but not corrugated, moist in rainy weather. =Gills= adnate, with
a decurrent tooth, more crowded, _whitish then flesh-colored_. The color
both of the pileus (normally dingy-brownish then livid) and of the stem
(normally becoming livid-brownish) is much more changeable than that of
A. rugosa, becoming yellow, rust colored, etc. It is not so tough and
pliant as A. rugosa. Forms departing from the type are very numerous;
the most beautiful is var. _calopus_ (_Gr._, beautiful; _Gr._, a foot)
with chestnut-colored stems, united in a spindle-shaped tail. _Fries._
=Spores= spheroid or subspheroid, 9–10×6–8µ _K._; 8–11×4–6µ _B._; 6–7×4µ
_Massee._
Common. Autumnal. Very variable. On trunks, fallen leaves.
Two well-marked varieties of this very variable species were observed
the past season. One grows on the ground among fallen leaves. It has a
dark brown pileus, close lamellæ and a very long stem, generally of a
delicate pink color toward the top. It might be called var. _longipes_.
The other grows under pine trees, has a broadly convex or expanded
grayish-brown pileus and a short stem. It might be called var.
_expansus_. _Peck_, 26th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
“_M. alcalina_ is closely allied to it (M. galericulata), but has a
stronger alkaline odor and a rather more fragile stem. In one of your
specimens I detect a slight incarnate tint to the gills, and this is
pretty conclusive evidence that it belongs to M. galericulata. Species
of Mycena are not generally reckoned among edible fungi or even
promising fungi; I suppose on account of the thin flesh of the cap, but
of course it is possible to make up in numbers what is lacking in size.
I am glad to know you have found this to be an esculent one.” Letter
Professor Peck to C. McIlvaine, October 5, 1893.
The caps and stems when young make as good a dish as one cares to eat.
The substance is pleasant, and the flavor delicate. They are best stewed
slowly in their own fluids, after washing, for ten minutes and seasoned
with pepper, salt and butter.
=M. parabo´lica= Fr.—shaped like a parabola. =Pileus= becoming black at
the disk, inclining to violaceous, otherwise becoming pale, whitish,
somewhat membranaceous, at first erect and oval, then parabolic, obtuse,
never expanded, moist, somewhat shining when dry, smooth, even, striate
toward the entire margin. =Stem= 2–3 in. long, 1 line thick, tubed,
tense and straight but not very rigid, thickened and bearded-rooted at
the base, pale below, dark violaceous above, when young white-mealy,
otherwise even, smooth, dry. =Gills= simply adnate, ascending, somewhat
distant, rarely connected by veins, quite entire, white, somewhat gray
at the base.
=Stem= less rigid than that of A. galericulatus. Truly gregarious or
cespitose. _Fries._
=Spores= 12×6µ _B._; elliptical, 11–12×6µ _Massee_.
Trenton, N.J. June. _E.B. Sterling_; West Virginia, New Jersey,
Pennsylvania, on decaying stumps, trunks of oak, chestnut, poplar, pine.
June until far into the winter. _McIlvaine._
=Plant= up to 2½ in. high. =Caps= usually about ½ in., but reaching ¾
in.
A neat, attractive plant, whether single or in dense tufts. Its smell is
strong of fresh meal, and taste of that delicate flavor one finds in the
succulent base of the round, swamp rush, when pulled from its sheath—one
that every country school boy and girl knows. It is pleasant raw, and
delicious when cooked.