solid is equally good with the cap. Cooks in twenty-five minutes and is
of good flavor.
HETEROPHYL´LÆ.
=R. ves´ca= Fr.—_vesco_, to feed. =Pileus= _red-flesh-color, disk
darker_, fleshy, slightly firm, plano-depressed, _slightly wrinkled with
veins_, with a viscid pellicle, margin at length spreading. =Flesh=
cheesy, firm, shining white. =Stem= _solid_, compact, externally rigid,
_reticulated and wrinkled_ in a peculiar manner, often attenuated at the
base, shining white. =Gills= adnate, crowded, thin, shining white, with
many unequal and forked ones intermixed, but scarcely connected by
veins.
Of middle stature. _Taste mild_, pleasant. _Fries._
=Spores= globose, echinulate, white, 9–10µ diameter. _Massee_.
In mixed woods. Common. August to frost.
R. vesca is frequent in woods or margins, and under trees in the open.
It is especially fond of growing in the grass under lone chestnut trees.
The caps seldom exceed 2-½ in. across.
It is one of the best.
=R. cyanoxan´tha= (Schaeff.) Fr. _Gr_—blue; _Gr_—yellow. (From the
colors.) (Plate XLIV, fig. 1, p. 184.) =Pileus= 2–3 in. and more broad,
_lilac or purplish then olivaceous-green_, disk commonly becoming pale
often yellowish, _margin_ commonly becoming _azure-blue or livid
purple_, compact, convex then plane, then depressed or infundibuliform,
sometimes even, sometimes wrinkled or streaked, viscous, margin deflexed
then expanded, remotely and slightly striate. =Flesh= firm, cheesy,
white, commonly reddish beneath the separable pellicle. =Stem= 2–3 in.
long, as much as 1 in. thick, _spongy-stuffed_, but firm, often
cavernous within when old, equal, smooth, _even_, shining white. =Gills=
rounded behind, connected by veins, not much crowded, broad, forked with
shorter ones intermixed, shining white.
Allied to R. vesca in its _mild_, pleasant _taste_ and in other
respects, but constantly different in the color of the pileus, which is
very variable, whereas in R. vesca it is unchangeable. The peculiar
combination of colors in the pileus, though very variable, always
readily distinguishes it. _Fries._
=Spores= 8–9µ, cystidia numerous, pointed, _Massee_; 8–10×6–8µ _Sacc._
In mixed woods. Common. August to October.
Pronounced one of the best esculent species by all authorities.
=R. heterophyl´la= Fr. _Gr_—differing; _Gr_—a leaf. (Gills differing in
length.) =Pileus= very variable in color, but _never becoming reddish or
purple_, fleshy, firm, convexo-plane then depressed, _even, polished_,
the very thin pellicle disappearing, margin thin, even or densely but
slightly striate. =Flesh= white. =Stem= solid, firm, somewhat equal,
_even_, shining white. =Gills= _reaching the stem in an attenuated form,
very narrow, very crowded_, forked and dimidiate, shining white.
Taste _always mild_, as in R. cyanoxantha, from which it differs in its
smaller stature, in the pileus being thinner, even, _never reddish_ or
purplish, with a thin closely adnate pellicle, in the _stem being firm
and solid_, and in the _gills_ being _thin, very narrow, very crowded_,
etc. The apex of the stem is occasionally dilated in the form of a cup,
so that the gills appear remote. _Fries._
=Spores= echinulate, 5×7µ _W.G.S._; 7–8µ diameter _Massee_.
Common. Woods. July to November.
Edible, of a sweet nutty flavor. _Stevenson._
R. heterophylla is very common. Its smooth, even pileus, colored in some
dingy shade of green, distinguishes it. It is much infested by grubs.
Specimens for the table should be young and fresh. Wilted specimens are
unpleasant.
=R. f[oe]´tens= Fr.—_f[oe]tens_, stinking. =Pileus= 4–5 in. and more
broad, dingy yellow, often becoming pale, thinly fleshy, at first
bullate, then expanded and depressed, covered with a pellicle which is
adnate, not separable, and viscid in wet weather, margin broadly
membranaceous, at the first bent inward _with ribs which are at length
tubercular_. =Flesh= thin, _rigid_-fragile, pallid. =Stem= 2 in. and
more long, ½-1 in. thick, stout, stuffed then hollow, whitish. =Gills=
adnexed, crowded, connected by veins, with very many _dimidiate and
forked_ ones intermixed, whitish, at the first _exuding watery drops_.
_Fetid._ _Taste acrid._ Very _rigid_, most distinct from all others in
_its very heavy empyreumatic_ odor. In very dry weather the odor is
often obsolete. The margin is more broadly membranaceous and hence
marked with _longer furrows_ than in any other species. It differs from
all the preceding ones in the gills at the first exuding watery drops.
The gills become obsoletely light yellow, and dingy when bruised.
_Fries._
=Pileus= fleshy, with a wide thin margin, hemispherical or convex, then
expanded or depressed, viscid when moist, widely striate-tuberculate on
the margin, dull pale yellow or straw color. =Lamellæ= rather broad,
close, venose-connected, some of them forked, whitish. =Stipe= nearly
cylindrical, whitish, hollow. =Spores= white. =Plant= sometimes
cespitose.
=Height= 2–4 in.; breadth of pileus 2–3 in. =Stipe= 4–6 lines thick.
Pine woods. West Albany. October.
=Taste= mild at first, then slightly disagreeable. _Peck_, 23d Rep. N.Y.
State Bot.
=Spores= minute, echinulate, almost globular, 8µ _W.G.S._; 8–10µ
_Massee_.
In woods. Common. July to October.
Var. _granula´ta_ has the pileus rough with small granular scales.
_Peck_, Rep. 39.
A very coarse and easily recognized species. Reckoned poisonous, though
eaten by slugs. _W.G.S._
The verdict is against it. Both smell and taste are usually unpleasant.
Cooked it retains its flavor, more closely resembling wild cherry bark
than anything else. On two occasions I ate enough to convince me that it
was not poisonous.
=R. el´egans= Bresad.—_elegans_, pretty. Mild at first, becoming acrid
with age. =Pileus= 2–3 in. across. =Flesh= rather thick; convex then
depressed; margin tuberculose and striate when old, viscid, bright rosy
flesh-color, soon ochraceous at the circumference, everywhere densely
granulated. =Gills= adnexed or slightly rounded, narrow behind, very
much crowded, equal, rarely forked, whitish, becoming either entirely or
here and there ochraceous-orange. =Stem= 1½-2 in. long, 5–7 lines thick,
a little thickened at the base, rather rugulose, white, base ochraceous.
=Flesh= white, turning ochraceous and acrid when old.
=Spores= 8–10µ diameter _Massee_.
Allied to R. vesca. Known by the bright rose-colored, densely granular
pileus and tuberculose margin. When old the pileus is almost entirely
ochraceous. _Massee._
Frequent in the West Virginia forests, 1881–1885. Chester county, Pa.,
1887–1890. In mixed woods. July to September. _McIlvaine._
It differs from R. vesca in its cap being minutely granulated instead of
streaked, and in becoming acrid with age.
The caps are of good quality, needing to be well cooked.
FRA´GILES.
* _Gills and spores white._
=R. eme´tica= Fr.—an emetic. (Plate XLIV, fig. 2, p. 184.) =Pileus= 3–4
in. broad, at first rosy then _blood-color_, tawny when old, sometimes
becoming yellow and at length (in moist places) white, at first
bell-shaped then flattened or depressed, polished, _margin_ at length
_furrowed and tubercular_. =Flesh= _white, reddish under the separable
pellicle_. =Stem= spongy-stuffed, stout, elastic when young, fragile
when older, even, white or reddish. =Gills= somewhat _free_, broad,
somewhat distant, shining white.
Handsome, regular, moderately firm, but fragile when full grown, _taste_
very _acrid_. _Fries._
=Spores= shining white, _Fries_; spheroid, echinulate, 8–10µ _K._; 7µ
_W.G.S._
Maryland, _Miss Banning_; New York, _Peck_, Rep. 22; Indiana, Illinois,
_H.I. Miller_.
Said to act as its name implies as an emetic. Certainly poisonous.
_Stevenson._
Krapp says he has himself experienced rare inconveniences from eating
it. Preferred to others in Indiana and Illinois. _H.I. Miller_, 1898.
The varying reports upon R. emetica are quoted above. In 1881, in the
West Virginia mountains, I began testing this Russula and soon found
that it was harmless. At least twenty persons ate it in quantity, during
its season, for four years. Yet, in my many published articles, I
continued, out of regard for the opinions of others and in excess of
caution, to warn against all bitter and peppery fungi. But from that
time until the present I have eaten it, and I have made special effort
to establish its innocence by getting numbers of my friendly helpers to
eat it.
It was suggested by one of its prosecutors that perhaps I was mistaking
another fungus for it. In October, 1898, I sent to Professor Peck a lot
of the Russula I was eating. He wrote: “It seems to be R. emetica as you
state. It certainly is hot enough for it.”
=R. pectina´ta= Fr.—_pecten_, a comb. =Pileus= 3 in. broad, at first
gluey, _toast-brown_, then dry, becoming pale, tan, with the _disk_
always _darker_, fleshy, _rigid_, convex then flattened and depressed or
concavo-infundibuliform (basin-shaped); margin thin, _pectinato-sulcate_
(deeply ribbed), here and there irregularly shaped. =Flesh= _white,
light yellowish under the pellicle_, which is not easily separable.
=Stem= curt, 3 in. long, ¾–1 in. thick, _rigid_, spongy-stuffed,
longitudinally _slightly striate, shining white_, often attenuated at
the base. =Gills= _attenuato-free_ behind, broader toward the margin,
somewhat crowded, _equal_, simple, white.
Odor weak, but nauseous, approaching that of R. f[oe]tens. _Fries._
=Spores= 8–9µ diameter _Massee_.
New York, _Peck_, 43d Rep. West Virginia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey.
Common in woods, grassy, mossy places. July to frost. _McIlvaine._
Named from the furrows of the margin being like the teeth of a comb.
Both the appearance and smell of this Russula will detect it. The
peculiar comb-like furrows of its margin, viscid or varnished-looking
cap, and strong but more spicy smell than cherry-bark are noticeable.
It is edible, but so strong in flavor that a piece of one will spoil a
dish if cooked with other kinds.
=R. ochroleu´ca= Fr. _Gr_—pale yellow; _Gr_—white. =Pileus= _yellow,
becoming pale_, fleshy, flattened or depressed, polished, with an adnate
pellicle, the spreading margin _becoming even_. =Stem= spongy, stuffed,
firm, _slightly reticulato-wrinkled, white, becoming cinereous_. =Gills=
_rounded behind_, united, broad, _somewhat equal_, white becoming pale.
Odor obsolete, but pleasant. The pileus is never reddish. It agrees
wholly with R. emetica in structure and stature, as well as in the
_acrid taste_; it differs however in the stem being slightly
recticulato-wrinkled, white becoming cinereous, in the adnate pellicle
of the pileus, in the margin remaining for a long time _even_ (remotely
striate, but not tubercular, only when old), and in the gills being
rounded behind and becoming pale. The color of the pileus is constant.
The gills remain _free_ and do not exude drops. _Fries._
=Cap= 2–4 in. across. =Stem= 2–3 in. long, up to ¾ in. thick.
=Spores= papillose, 7µ _W.G.S._, 8×9µ _Massee_.
Frequent in woods. July to October.
Not as common as R. emetica, yet frequently found, usually solitary, at
times gregarious. It is quite peppery, but loses pepperiness in cooking.
Myself and others have frequently eaten it.
=R. ci´trina= Gillet—_citrina_, citron colored. =Mild.= =Pileus= 2–3 in.
across, slightly fleshy at the disk, margin thin; convex then more or
less expanded and slightly depressed, rather viscid when moist, smooth,
slightly wrinkled at the margin when old, bright lemon-yellow, color
usually uniform, sometimes paler at the margin, occasionally with a
greenish tint, center of pileus at length becoming pale-ochraceous;
pellicle separable. =Gills= slightly decurrent, broadest a short
distance from the margin, and gradually becoming narrower towards the
base, forked at the base and also sometimes near the middle, white, 1½
lines deep at broadest part. =Stem= 2–3 in. long, about 4 lines thick,
equal or slightly narrowed at the base, slightly wrinkled, straight or
very slightly waved, solid.
=Spores= subglobose, echinulate, 8µ diameter.
In woods.
Known by the clear lemon-yellow or citron-colored pileus and the
persistently white gills and stem. The taste is mild at first, but
becomes slightly acrid if kept in the mouth for a short time. _Massee._
R. citrina can hardly be classed among the acrid species. The taste is
slightly of cherry-bark and disappears in cooking. It is usually found
in patches which contain ten to twenty individuals. It is a species of
fair quality.
=R. fra´gilis= Fr.—fragile. =Pileus= 1–1½ in. broad, rarely more,
flesh-color, changing color, very thin, fleshy only at the disk, at the
first convex and often umbonate, then plane and depressed, pellicle
thin, becoming pale, slightly viscid in wet weather; _margin_ very thin,
_tuberculoso-striate_. =Stem= 1½-2 in. long, spongy within, soon hollow,
often slightly striate, white. =Gills= slightly adnexed, very _thin,
crowded_, broad, _ventricose_, all equal, shining white. _Fries._
Very acrid. Smaller and more fragile than the rest of the group,
directly changing color. The color is variable, often opaque, typically
flesh-color, when changed in color white externally and internally,
often with reddish spots. Among varieties of color is to be noted a
livid flesh-colored form, with the disk becoming fuscous.
It is not easy to define it from fragile forms of R. emetica, but the
gills are much more crowded, thinner, and often slightly eroded at the
edge, ventricose; the pileus thinner and more lax, etc. _Stevenson._
Var. _nivea_ Fr.—_nivea_, snowy. Whole plant white.
=Spores= minutely echinulate 8–10×8µ _Massee_.
Though one of the peppery kind, I have not, after fifteen years of
eating it, had reason to question its edibility. The caps are not meaty,
but what there is of them is good.
=R. puncta´ta= Gillet—_punctata_, dotted. =Mild.= =Pileus= 1½-2½ in.
across. =Flesh= thin, white, reddish under the cuticle; convex then
flattened, viscid, rosy, disk darkest, punctate with dark reddish
point-like warts, pale when old; margin striate. =Gills= slightly
adnexed, 2 lines broad, white then yellowish, edge often reddish. =Stem=
about 1 in. long, 4–5 lines thick, attenuated and whitish at the base,
remainder colored like the pileus, stuffed.
=Spores= 8–9µ diameter _Massee_.
Among grass.
Edible. Boston Myc. Club Bull. 1896.
** _Gills and spores white then yellowish or bright lemon._
=R. in´tegra= Fr.—_integer_, entire, whole. =Pileus= 4–5 in. across,
typically red, changing color, fleshy, campanulato-convex then expanded
and depressed, fragile when full-grown, with a gluey pellicle, at length
_furrowed and somewhat tubercular_ at the margin. =Flesh= _white_,
sometimes yellowish above. =Stem= at first short, conical, then
club-shaped or _ventricose_, as much as 3 in. long, up to 1 in. thick,
spongy-stuffed, commonly stout, _even_, shining _white_. =Gills=
somewhat free, very broad, up to ¾ in., equal or bifid at the stem,
somewhat distant, connected by veins, pallid-white, at length light
yellow, _somewhat powdered yellow with the spores_.
_Taste mild_, often astringent. The most changeable of all species,
especially in the color of the pileus which is typically red, but at the
same time inclining to azure-blue, bay-brown, olivaceous, etc. Sometimes
the gills are sterile and remain white. _Fries._
=Spores= ellipsoid-spheroid or spheroid echinulate, globose, rough, 8–9µ
_C.B.P._; 9–10µ diameter, pale ochraceous. _Massee._
It is difficult to separate R. integra from R. alutacea. The spores
usually show upon the gills as pale dull yellow powder. It is of equal
excellence.
=R. decolo´rans= Fr.—_de_ and _coloro_, to color. =Pileus= 3–5 in.
broad, color various, at first orange-red, then light yellow and
becoming pale, fleshy, spherical then expanded and depressed, remarkably
regular, viscid when moist, thin and at length striate at the margin.
=Flesh= _white, but becoming somewhat cinereous_ when broken, and more
or less _variegated with black spots_ when old. =Stem= _elongated_, 3–5
in., cylindrical, solid, but spongy within, often _wrinkled-striate,
white then becoming cinereous_ especially within. =Gills= adnexed, often
in pairs, thin, crowded, fragile, white then yellowish.
_Taste mild._ Colors changeable according to a fixed rule, but not
variable. The gills are not ochraceous-pulverulent as in R. integra, nor
shining and pure yellow as in R. aurata, etc. _Fries._
=Spores= yellow, 8.3µ _Morgan_.
New York, _Peck_, 23d Rep. Angora, West Philadelphia, Pa., 1897, in
mixed woods. August to October. _McIlvaine._
Esculent and of good quality. _Morgan._
Meals of it make one regret its scarcity.
=R. basifurca´ta= Pk.—forked near stem. =Pileus= 2–3 in. broad, firm,
convex, umbilicate, becoming somewhat funnel form, glabrous, slightly
viscid when moist, the thin pellicle scarcely separable except on the
margin, dingy-white, sometimes tinged with yellow or reddish-yellow, the
margin nearly even. =Lamellæ= rather close, narrowed toward the base,
adnate or slightly emarginate, many of them forked near the base, a few
short ones intermingled, white becoming yellowish. =Stem= 8–12 lines
long, 5–6 lines thick, firm, solid, becoming spongy within, white.
=Spores= elliptical, pale yellow, uninucleate or shining, 9×6.5µ.
=Flesh= white, taste mild, then bitterish.
Dry hard ground in paths and wood roads. Canoga, N.Y. July.
This species closely resembles pale forms of R. furcata, from which it
is separated by the absence of any silky micor and by the yellowish
color and elliptical shape of the spores and by the yellowish hue of the
lamellæ. _Peck_, 38th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
Mt. Gretna, Pa., September, 1898, to frost. Gravelly ground. Solitary.
Gills adnate. Identified as his species by Professor Peck.
The slight bitterish taste disappears in cooking. It is edible and of
fair quality.
=R. aura´ta= Fr.—_aurum_, gold. =Pileus= 2–3 in. broad, varying
_lemon-yellow, orange and red_, disk darker, fleshy, _rigid_, brittle
however, hemispherical then plane, disk not depressed, pellicle thin,
adnate, viscid in wet weather, _margin even_, and slightly striate only
when old, but sometimes wrinkled. =Flesh= _lemon-yellow_ under the
pellicle, white below. =Stem= 2–3 in. long, solid, _firm_, but spongy
within, cylindrical, obsoletely striate, white or lemon-yellow. =Gills=
rounded free, connected by veins, broad, equal, shining, never
pulverulent, whitish inclining to light yellow, but vivid _lemon-yellow
at the edge_. _Fries._
West Virginia, 1881–1885; Pennsylvania, 1887–1898. In woods under pines.
July to October. _McIlvaine._
Pileus sometimes depressed in center, very viscid when wet.
A troop of this Russula upon brown wood mat is a pretty sight. Its rich
and brightly-colored cap attracts the eye from a distance. The yellow
edge of its gills is the distinctive mark of the species.
The smell is pleasant, the taste slightly of cherry bark.
Cooked it is one of the best Russulæ.
=R. atropurpu´rea= Pk.—_atre_, black; _purpureus_, purple. Dark purple
Russula. =Pileus= 3–4 in. broad, at first convex, then centrally
depressed, glabrous, dark purple, blackish in the center, the margin
even or slightly striate. =Flesh= white, grayish or grayish-purple under
the separable pellicle, taste mild, odor of the drying plant fetid, very
unpleasant. =Lamellæ= nearly equal, subdistant, sometimes forked near
the stem, at first white, then yellowish, becoming brownish where
bruised. =Stem= 2–3 in. long, 5–8 lines thick, equal, glabrous, spongy
within, white, brownish where bruised. =Spores= subglobose, minutely
rough, pale ochraceous with a salmon tint, 8–10µ.
Open woods. Gansevoort. July.
In color this species resembles R. variata, but in other respects it is
very different. It is very distinct in the peculiar color of its spores,
and in the brownish hue assumed by wounds. _Peck_, 41st Rep. N.Y. State
Bot.
West Philadelphia, Pa. July, 1897. Open woods. Solitary. Philadelphia
Myc. Center.
Many were eaten and enjoyed. Only fresh plants are acceptable, and they
should be cooked as soon as gathered. Even in wilting they become
unpleasant.
*** _Gills and spores ochraceous._
=R. aluta´cea= Fr.—_aluta_, tanned leather. =Pileus= 2–4 in. broad,
commonly bright blood-color or _red_, even black-purple, but becoming
pale, especially at the disk, fleshy, bell-shaped then convex, flattened
and somewhat umbilicate, even, _with a remarkably sticky pellicle,
margin thin, at length striate, tubercular_. =Flesh= _snow-white_.
=Stem= 2 in. long, solid, stout, equal, even, white, most frequently
_variegated-reddish_, even purple. =Gills= at first free, _thick, very
broad_, connected by veins, all equal, somewhat distant, at first pallid
light yellow, then bright ochraceous, not pulverulent.
It is distinguished from R. integra by its gills not being pulverulent.
_Fries._
=Spores= yellow 7–9µ _Massee_; 11–14×8–10µ _Sacc._, _Syll_.
July to frost. _McIlvaine._
R. alutacea is easily recognized among Russulæ by its mild taste and
broad yellow gills. In young specimens one sometimes has to look at the
gills at an angle to detect the yellow. It is quite common but a
solitary grower. It is everywhere eaten as a favorite. Only fresh plants
yield a good flavor. When the stem is soft, it should be thrown away.
=R. puella´ris= Fr. (Plate XLIV, fig. 7, p. 184.) =Mild.= =Pileus= 1–1½
in. across, flesh almost membranaceous except the disk; conico-convex
then expanded, at first rather gibbous, then slightly depressed,
scarcely viscid, color peculiar, purplish-livid then yellowish, disk
always darker and brownish; tuberculosely striate, often to the middle.
=Gills= adnate but very much narrowed behind, thin, crowded, white then
pale-yellow, not shining nor powdered with the spores. =Stem= 1–1½ in.
long, 2–4 lines thick, equal, soft, fragile, wrinkled under a lens,
white or yellowish; stuffed, soon hollow; taste mild.
=Spores= subglobose, pale-yellow, echinulate, 10×8–9µ _Massee_.
In woods.
Among the most frequent and readily recognized of species, occurring in
troops. Always small, thin, taste mild. Allied to R. nitida, but more
slender; color paler, and not shining. _Fries._
Distinguished from R. nitida and R. nauseosa by the absence of smell.
_Massee._
Var. _inten´sior_ Cke. Nearly the same size as the typical form; pileus
deep purple, nearly black at the disk.
The stem has a tendency to become thickened at the base, and turns
yellowish when touched.
Var. _rose´ipes_ Sec., given by Massee, has been retained as a distinct
species by Professor Peck, Rep. 51, and is described in place. R.
pusilla Pk., 50th Rep., is closely allied to it.
West Virginia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, North Carolina. Common in woods
and under trees in short grass. July to September. _McIlvaine._
This little Russula is ubiquitous. It does not amount to much when other
fungi are plenty, because of its very thin cap, but it thrives in all
sorts of summer weather. When its companions are scarce or parched R.
puellaris is gladly gathered by the mycophagist, its numbers making up
for its lightness and lack of flavor.
=R. pusil´la= Pk.—little. =Pileus= very thin, nearly plane or slightly
and umbilicately depressed in the center, glabrous, slightly striate on
the margin, red, sometimes a little darker in the center, the thin
pellicle separable. =Flesh= white, taste mild. =Lamellæ= broad for the
size of the plant, subventricose, subdistant, adnate or slightly rounded
behind, white, becoming yellowish-ochraceous in drying. =Stem= short,
soft, solid or spongy within, white.
=Spores= faintly tinged with yellow, 7.6µ broad.
=Pileus= scarcely 1 in. broad. =Stem= 6–12 lines long, 2–3 lines thick.
Bare ground in thin woods. Port Jefferson. July.