or a short, thick tubercle.
IV.—APUS. (_Gr_—without; a foot.) Page 488.
Stem wanting; pileus attached by the side or spread on the matrix.
V.—RESUPINATI. (Lying on the back.) Page 489.
The pores being placed directly upon the wood or on the mycelium, the
pileus proper is absent.
I.—ME´SOPUS.
=P. ovi´nus= Schaeff.—relating to sheep. =Pileus= 2–4 in. broad, fleshy,
thick, fragile, irregular in shape, becoming scaly, whitish. =Stem=
short, thick, 1 in. or more in length, white. =Pores= minute, equal,
round, white then citron-color.
On the ground. Autumn.
North Carolina, _Curtis_; Massachusetts, _Frost_; Ohio, _Morgan_; New
York, ground in pine woods. Bethlehem. September, _Peck_, 22d Rep.
Cordier says it possesses an agreeable odor of almonds and that Fries
and his companions ate it raw in their mycological excursions.
Edible. _Peck_, _Curtis_.
=P. leuco´melas= (Pers.) Fr.—_leucos_, white; _melas_, black. =Pileus=
2–4 in. broad, fleshy, somewhat fragile, irregularly-shaped, silky,
sooty-black. =Flesh= soft, reddish when broken. =Stem= 1–3 in. in
length, stout, unequal, somewhat tomentose, sooty-black, becoming black
internally. Pileus and stem becoming black in places. =Pores= rather
large, unequal, ashy or whitish, becoming black in drying.
=Spores= pale brown, 10–12×4–5µ. _Massee._
North Carolina, edible, _Curtis_; Ohio, a curious esculent. _Morgan._
=P. circina´tus= Fr.—round. =Pileus= 3–4 in. broad, compact, thick
round, plane, zoneless, velvety, reddish-brown. =Flesh= the same color.
It forms duplicate strata of pilei, the inferior contiguous with the
stem and corky; the superior compact, soft, floccose. =Stem= 1 in. thick
and high, bearing a reddish-brown tomentum. =Pores= decurrent, entire,
dusky-gray.
In fir woods.
A noble species, memorable for the stratified duplicate pilei.
Var. _prolif´erus._ Like the typical form but having one or more pilei
developed from the upper surface of the first one. Fulton Chain. August.
_Peck_, 46th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
New York. On ground in borders of woods. September. _Peck_, 32d, 46th
Rep.
On ground in oak woods, West Philadelphia. _McIlvaine._
When young the soft pilei are good.
[Illustration:
Photographed by Dr. J.R. Weist. PLATE CXXX.
POLYPORUS SQUAMOSUS.
]
II.—PLEUROPUS.
=P. squamo´sus= Fr.—_squama_, a scale. (Plate CXXX, p. 480.) =Pileus= 3
in.-1½ ft. broad, somewhat ochraceous, _variegated with a broad_,
_adpressed, spot-like_, centrifugal, _darker scales_, fleshy-pliant,
fan-shaped, flattened. =Stem= excentric and lateral, obese,
_reticulated_ at the apex, blackish at the base. =Pores= thin, variable
(at first minute), then large, angular and torn, pallid. _Fries._
Handsome, commonly very large, somewhat central and umbilicate when
young, at length lateral, very variable in shape.
On trunks and stumps, chiefly ash. Common. May to November. _Stevenson._
=Spores= oval, white, 14×6µ _W.G.S._; elliptical, colorless, 12×5µ
_Massee_.
Massachusetts, _Sprague_; Iowa, _Macbride_; New York. Trunk of elm. May.
_Peck_, 27th Rep.; West Virginia, New Jersey, Pennsylvania. On fallen
trunks and on stumps. May to November. _McIlvaine._
This species does not seem to be common in America, but is found
throughout Europe. It varies in size from 3 in. to over 3 feet. It has
been known to attain the circumference of 7 ft. 5 in., and the weight of
40 lbs. Dr. Badham says that it can not be masticated and that its
expressed juice is very disagreeable. The fact, however, remains that it
is eaten, and is recorded as edible by most authors. It is undoubtedly
tough, but cut fine and stewed slowly for half an hour it is quite as
tender as the muscle of an oyster and has a pleasant flavor.
=P. pi´cipes= Fr.—_pix_, pitch; _pes_, a foot. Pallid then chestnut,
commonly pale yellowish-livid, with the disk chestnut. =Pileus=
fleshy-coriaceous, then rigid, tough, even, smooth, depressed at the
disk or behind. =Flesh= white. =Stem= excentric and lateral, equal,
firm, at first velvety, then naked, dotted, black up to the pores.
=Pores= decurrent, round, very small, rather slender, white, then
slightly pale yellowish. _Fries._
Imbricated, odor somewhat sweet. The pileus is depressed behind,
commonly emarginate, funnel-shaped with lobes all round.
On trunks, especially willow. Frequent. July to December. _Stevenson._
Many young plants, in tufts upon a decaying oak log, were found by me at
Mt. Gretna, August, 1899. They were oyster-color, the very thin caps
translucent, 2–6 in. across, 1⁄16 in. thick; pores not visible to the
naked eye. The black dots upon the stems developed some time after
gathering.
They were pleasantly crisp when stewed and of fine flavor. Older
specimens were bitter and tough.
III.—MERISMA.
=P. umbella´tus= Fr.—_umbella_, a sun-shade. Very much branched,
fibrous-fleshy, toughish. =Pileoli= very numerous, ½-1½ in. broad,
sooty, dull-red or pallid light-yellow, _entire, umbilicate_. =Stems=
elongated, separate, united at the base, white. =Pores= minute, white.
The pileoli have occurred white. _Fries._
Edible. _Fries._
New York, _Peck_, Rep. 51; Richmond, Ind., _Dr. J.R. Weist_; Gouverneur,
N.Y., _Mrs. E.C. Anthony_; West Virginia, New Jersey, Pennsylvania. On
decaying roots in ground and on stumps. May to November. _McIlvaine._
Tufts dense, branches spreading from a center. The pilei up to 2 in.
across, connected at base. The dense spreading tufts, up to a foot
across and half as high, are very noticeable. The flesh is soft and of
good flavor. Cook like P. intybaceus.
=P. a´nax= Berk. Fleshy, fibrous, rather tough, dusky-gray, branching
out from a thick, single stem at the base and forming a large head of
branches and pileoli 10–20 lines in diameter; the branches terminate in
numerous large pileoli of various forms and size, imbricating, confluent
and recurved. =Flesh= and =pores= white. =Stems= thick, growing
together, white. =Pores= large, unequal, angular, white. =Spores= white,
subelliptic, 7–8µ long.
Ohio, at the base of oak trees and stumps. Autumn. _Morgan._
This species has apparently been confused by some American mycologists
with P. intybaceus. I have received specimens of it bearing that name.
The spores of that species are described as elliptic or ovoid. The
spores of Polyporus anax, as shown by our specimens, are globose.
_Peck_, 51st Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
Ohio, _Morgan_; New York, _Peck_, 51st Rep.; New Jersey, _Sterling_;
Angora, West Philadelphia, growing on rotting stump. September, 1897,
_McIlvaine._
Edible when young and fresh.
[Illustration:
Photographed by Dr. J.R. Weist. PLATE CXXVIII.
POLYPORUS FRONDOSUS.
]
=P. frondo´sus= Fr.—_frons_, a leafy branch. (Plate CXXVIII, p. 482.)
Tuft ½-1 ft. broad, very much branched, fibrous-fleshy, toughish.
=Pileoli= very numerous, ½-2 in., sooty-gray, _dimidiate, wrinkled_,
lobed, intricately recurved. =Flesh= white. =Stems= growing into each
other, white. =Pores= _rather tender, very small, acute_, white.
Pores commonly round, but in an oblique position, gaping open and torn.
_Fries._
North Carolina, _Curtis_; Iowa, _Macbride_; New York, _Peck_, 24th Rep.;
West Virginia, 1881–1885, Chester county, Angora, Philadelphia, Pa. On
stumps, roots, etc. Rare. September to frost, _McIlvaine_.
Edible. _Curtis._ Sold in the Roman market.
Tufts up to 12 in. across; the branches very numerous, up to 2 in. wide.
The plant is tender when young and grows tough as it matures. When young
it is of good flavor and edible—older it makes a well-flavored gravy, or
is edible if chopped fine and very well cooked.
(Plate CXXIX.)
[Illustration: POLYPORUS INTYBACEUS.]
=P. intyba´ceus= Fr.—succory-like. Very much branched, fleshy, somewhat
fragile. =Pileoli= _very numerous_, pale-yellowish inclining to fuscous,
_dimidiate, stretched out_, sinuate, at length spathulate. =Stems=
connate in a very short trunk. =Pores= _firm, obtuse_, white, inclining
to dingy-brown. _Fries._
About same size as P. frondosus and larger. _Stevenson._
=Spores= colorless, elliptical, 7×3.5µ _Massee_; 6×3µ _W.G.S._
Indiana, _H.I. Miller_. Base of living trees. Woodland Cemetery, West
Philadelphia, Pa., Mt. Gretna, Pa., West Virginia, New Jersey. Large
tufts growing from oak roots in ground and at base of oak trees.
_McIlvaine._
Edible. _Stevenson._ Paulet says: In place of its being heavy upon the
stomach, _he_ will feel all the lighter who sups upon it.
The people of the Vosges call it the Hen-of-the-Woods.
The words of the old song—
“So very much depends upon
The way in which it’s done,”
apply with exceptional force to the cooking of P. intybaceus. If it is
cut in thin slices across the grain and slowly stewed for half an hour
it will be tender and of good flavor. It can then be served in that way,
or made into patties or croquettes.
=P. crista´tus= Fr.—_crista_, a crest. Branched, firmly fleshy, fragile.
=Pileoli= about 3 in. broad, _reddish-green_, entire and dimidiate,
imbricated, _depressed, somewhat pulverulent-villous, then cracked into
scales_. =Stems= connate, irregularly shaped, white. =Pores= minute,
angular and torn, whitish. _Fries._
Very changeable in form, sometimes simple with an undulato-lobed,
central pileus.
Edible. _Curtis._
Mt. Gretna, Pa., Woodland Cemetery, Philadelphia, West Virginia. On
ground over roots, open woods and grassy places. September, October.
_McIlvaine._
Variable in form, but usually in rose-shaped clusters, which are
slightly greenish at times; oftener shades of yellow. The substance is
the same in texture as P. intybaceus. Cook in same manner.
=P. con´fluens= Fr.—stems confluent; adherent. =Pilei= branched, fleshy,
fragile, thick, dimidiate, imbricated, confluent, smooth, fleshy-yellow
becoming obscure, slightly scaly. =Stem= short. =Pores= short, minute,
pallid-white.
Eaten about Nice; savor a little sharp. _Cordier_; North Carolina,
superior eating. _Curtis._ Pine woods. New Scotland. September.
Our specimens are not at all squamulose, and this character is not
attributed to the species by all authors. It is probable that it is not
uniform in this respect. _Peck_, 39th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
=P. Berk´eleyi= Fr. Very much branched. =Pileoli= very large, subzonate,
finally tomentose, yellowish, fleshy, tough becoming corky and hard.
=Stem= short or none, arising from a long and thick common base growing
out of the ground usually near trees or stumps. =Pores= rather large,
irregular, angular, pale yellowish.
A magnificent specimen found near Boston a dozen years ago and exhibited
in the window of Doyle, the florist, was fully four feet high and from
two to three feet broad, containing very many pileoli.
North Carolina, edible, _Curtis_; Iowa, _Bessey_; Ohio, _Morgan_; Mt.
Gretna, Pa., very large specimens, 20 in. across. _McIlvaine._
Edible when young.
=P. gigante´us= Fr.—_gigas_, a giant. Tuft 1–2 ft. and more broad, in
many imbricated layers, fleshy-pliant then somewhat coriaceous. =Pilei=
_date-brown_, dimidiate, very broad, flaccid, somewhat zoned, rivulose,
depressed behind. =Stems= connato-branched from a common tuber. =Pores=
_minute, somewhat round, pallid_, at length torn.
The rigid cuticle separates into granules or fibrillose squamules. Pores
becoming dark when touched. _Fries._
Edible, _Curtis_. Esculent when young. On the continent its esculent
qualities are known and appreciated. _Cooke._
West Virginia, Chester county, Pa., Eagle’s Mere, Pa. On decaying stumps
and roots. _McIlvaine._
It is well marked by its spore-surface becoming black to the touch. When
young and fresh it stews to a pleasant, edible consistency, but is tough
if not well cooked or too old. The flavor of a gravy from it is at all
times good.
=P. sulphu´reus= Fr.—_sulphur_, brimstone. (Plate CXXV, fig. 2, p. 476.)
In many cespitose layers, 1–2 ft. and more, _juicy-cheesy_. =Pilei= 8
in. or more broad, _reddish-yellow_, imbricated, undulated, rather
smooth. =Flesh= light yellowish, then white, splitting open and not
hardened when old. =Pores= minute, plane, _sulphur-yellow_. _Fries._
Soon becoming pale. Commonly sessile, but varying with a stem, lateral
on standing trees, but expanded on all sides on fallen ones; also
club-shaped, porous throughout. _Sow._ In its fullest vigor it is filled
with sulphur-yellow milk.
On living trees and stumps. Frequent. August to October. _Stevenson._
=Spores= oval, white, minutely papillose, 8×5µ _W.G.S._; elliptical,
hyaline, slightly papillose, 7–8×4–5µ _Massee_.
Edible. _Stevenson_, _Curtis_.
Maryland, _Miss Banning_; Indiana, _H.I. Miller_; West Virginia, New
Jersey, Pennsylvania. On willow, apple, cherry, maple, hickory, etc.
Frequent. August to November. _McIlvaine._
Frequently in large masses. Commonly broadly attached, but sometimes
with a short stem. Very occasionally a single pileus will protrude from
a tree like a giant yellow tongue shaded with reddish-orange. Usually
the pilei are in clusters united in a solid base, white-fleshed and rich
in color. I have seen clusters two feet across. On an old willow at Mt.
Gretna, a cluster 18 in. across afforded a dozen meals. Whenever a meal
was wanted a pound or two was broken off. It lasted until January. If P.
sulphureus is cooked properly it is a delicious fungus. Cut fine, stew
slowly and well, season, add butter, milk with a little thickening.
=P. macula´tus= Pk.—having _maculæ_-spots. =Pileus= of a cheesy
consistence, broad, flattened, sometimes confluent, sessile or narrowed
into a short stem, slightly uneven, white or yellowish-white, marked
with darker zones and watery spots. =Pores= minute, subangular, short,
whitish, sometimes tinged with brown. =Flesh= white.
=Pileus= 4–6 in. broad, 6–8 lines thick.
Prostrate trunks of trees in woods. Worcester. July.
In texture and shape this species is related to P. sulphureus, but the
pores are smaller than in that species. The plants are sometimes
cespitose, sometimes single. The spots in the dried specimens have a
smooth depressed appearance. _Peck_, 26th Rep.
Angora, West Philadelphia. September, 1896. Mt. Gretna, Pa., September,
1897–1898. On white oak trunks. _McIlvaine._
Several specimens of different ages proved good eating. Like P.
sulphureus it must be well cooked.
=P. hetero´clitus= Fr. _Gr_—one of two; _Gr_, to lean. In many cespitose
layers, coriaceous. =Pilei= 2½ in. broad, _orange, sessile, expanded on
all sides from a radical tubercle_, lobed, villous, zoneless. Pores
irregularly shaped and elongated, golden-yellow. _Fries._
On the ground under oak. Rare.
The flat pilei extend horizontally from the tubercle. Irregular,
eccentric. _Stevenson._
Minnesota, _Johnson_.
Haddonfield, N.J., Hopkin’s woods. June to July, 1890–1896. _McIlvaine._
Of all fungoid growth this is the most showy. Its clusters, often a foot
and a half in diameter and spread like mammoth dahlias, are gorgeous in
color and conspicuous in design. Resting upon the ground or reared
against the base of tree or stump, they deceive by their likeness to
gaudy bouquets, left by foreign picnickers. In quality it is the same as
P. sulphureus. It does not, however, retain its edibility. As it ages it
becomes offensive.
=P. por´ipes= Fr.—porous-stemmed. =Pileus= 1.5–3 in. broad, rather
fleshy, sinuately repand, smooth, grayish-brown. =Stem= central or
excentric, firm, smooth, 1.5–3 in. long, 4–6 lines thick, punctuated by
the whitish decurrent pores.
On earth in hilly regions.
=Cap= 2 in. across, light drab, smooth, slightly furfuraceous toward
center, broken into minute appressed squamules, zoned. =Flesh= fibrous,
white-pliable. =Tubes= very shallow, round mouths with obtuse divisions,
china-white, running down to base of stem. =Stem= eccentric, almost
lateral, entirely surrounded by pores, connate at base, ½ in. thick.
=Smell= pleasant.
New York. Ground. August, _Peck_, Rep. 24; Mt. Gretna, Pa., August to
November, _McIlvaine_. A large tufted species growing on the ground in
woods, August to November, _McIlvaine_.
When raw tastes like the best chestnuts or filberts, but rather too dry
cooked. _Curtis._
It must be chopped fine and slowly cooked.
=P. immi´tis= Pk.—wide, rude. =Pilei= cespitose-imbricated, broad,
slightly convex or flattened, more or less rough or uneven,
radiately-wrinkled, tuberculose or fibrous-bristled, zoneless, white,
becoming tinged with yellow or alutaceous in drying. =Flesh= white,
slightly fibrous, soft and moist when fresh, cheesy when dry, with a
subacid odor. =Pores= minute, angular or even subflexuous, about equal
in length to the thickness of the pileus, the dissepiments thin, white,
often at length dentate or lacerate on the edge. =Spores= minute, white,
elliptical, 3–4×18–20µ.
=Pilei= 2–4 in. broad, the flesh commonly 3–4 lines thick.
Decaying ash trunks. East Berne. August.
The species is apparently related to P. cæsareus, but the character of
the pores is quite different in the two species. _Peck_, 35th Rep. N.Y.
State Bot.
Mt. Gretna, Pa. On dead black oak. August to November, 1898.
Several clusters grew on dead black oaks. The pilei overlap and the
wrinkled corrugated margins curve downward, giving them the semblance of
shells. From a distance a group looks like Pleurotus ostreatus. The
substance is juicy; while cooking it is at first bitter, but this
disappears. It becomes tender and well flavored.
=P. alliga´tus= Fr.—_alligo_, to bind to. In many cespitose layers,
fibrous-fleshy, rigid-fragile. =Pilei= tan-isabelline, imbricated,
unequal, _zoneless, villous_. =Pores= minute, soft, white, readily
becoming stopped up with flocci.
Often clavate when young. Commonly wrapping round stipules and grasses.
_Fries._
=Spores= elliptical, pale, 6×7µ _Massee_.
Woodland Cemetery, Philadelphia. Among oak trees on grassy ground. July,
August, September. _McIlvaine._
Tufts frequently weigh two pounds. When young the plant cooks well, is
tender and of sweet, pleasant flavor. When old it has a sour unpleasant
odor.
IV.—APUS.
=P. chio´neus= Fr. _Gr_—snow. White =pileus= 1 in. and more broad,
fleshy, _soft, becoming even, smooth_, zoneless, often extended behind,
margin inflexed. =Pores= curt, very small, round, equal, quite entire.
_Fries._
Always soft, fragile, hyaline-white when moist, shining white when dry.
Odor acid. Without a cuticle. _Stevenson._
=Spores= white, oval, 21×3µ _W.G.S._
New York. Decaying wood of frondose trees. _Peck_, 33d Rep.
Angora, Philadelphia, Mt. Gretna, Pa. On standing and fallen timber.
June to September. _McIlvaine._
This snow-white Polyporus is too conspicuous to be passed unseen. One
does not expect to find snow-balls stuck against trees in August. At a
distance it resembles one. When young and fresh it is good.
=P. betuli´nus= Fr.—_betula_, birch. =Pileus= fleshy, then corky,
hoof-shaped, obtuse, zoneless, smooth, _the oblique vertex in the form
of an umbo_, pellicle thin, separating. =Pores= late of being developed,
curt, minute, unequal, at length separating. _Fries._
On living and dead birch. Common. May to December.
=Pileus= 3–6 in. broad. The pileus is at first pale, then acquiring a
brownish tinge. The edge is always very obtuse. _Stevenson._
The lower surface or hymenium is frequently rough with numerous acicular
projections, making the plant look like a Hydnum when viewed
horizontally. _Peck_, 24th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
Massachusetts, Kansas, New York. _Peck_, Rep. 24.
Wherever the birch grows this neat, white-fleshed Polyporus abounds.
When young it is eaten by deer. Dried it burns with a white flame, or
holds fire as well as the best punk. It is a valuable fuel, already
prepared for the stove. In the birch forests near Eagle’s Mere, Pa.,
tons of it can be seen protruding from tree and log.
When very young it is fair. Unpleasant when old.
V.—RESUPINATI.
=P. sinuo´sus= Fr.—full of folds. Broadly effused, adnate, dry, the
evanescent mycelium somewhat rooting, white then yellowish. =Pores=
large, surface flexuous, acute, lacerated. Odor of licorice.
New York. Decaying wood of maple. _Peck_, 40th Rep.
Mt. Gretna, Pa. _McIlvaine._
Of but little food value. Collected carefully and boiled, it yields a
pleasantly flavored liquor.
[Illustration]
=MERU´LIUS= Hall.
(Plate CXXVI, fig. 3, p. 478.)
Hymenophore resting on a loose mold-like mycelium, covered with the
soft, waxy, continuous hymenium, having its surface variously plicate or
wrinkled, the folds forming irregular pores, sometimes obsoletely
toothed.
Generally on wood.
I have tasted, raw, every species I have found. They are all more or
less woody in flavor, and I believe them to be edible. At the best
Merulius would be an emergency genus. M. tremellosus is substantial, as
is M. rubellus Pk.
=M. tremello´sus= Schrad.—_tremellosus_, trembling. Resupinate; margin
becoming free and more or less reflexed, usually radiately-toothed,
gelatinoso-cartilaginous; hymenium variously wrinkled and porous;
whitish and subtranslucent looking, becoming tinged brown in the center.
=Spores= cylindrical, curved, about 4×1µ.
On wood. From 1–3 in. across, remaining pale when growing in dark
places. Margin sometimes tinged rose, radiating when well developed.
_Massee._
=Spores= cylindrical, curved, hyaline, 4×1µ _K._
New York. Old logs, stumps, Catskill mountains. _Peck_, 22d Rep. N.Y.
State Bot.
Mt. Gretna, Pa. Common, both rose-colored and translucent brown species,
numerous on decaying wood. October to November, 1898–1899. _McIlvaine._
M. tremellosus is a common species and rather attractive looking. In
substance it approaches Tremella and Peziza. The spore-bearing surface
is superior (turned upward) and then sometimes turned in at the margin
which frequently is bright rose color, sometimes yellowish-rose. It is
rather tasteless—slightly woody in flavor, rather tough. An emergency
species.
=M. rubel´lus= Pk.—_rubellus_, dim. of _ruber_, reddish. Generally
cespitose, imbricated, sessile, dimidiate, soft, tenacious, tomentose,
evenly red, pale when dry; margin mostly undulately inflexed; hymenium
white or flesh-color; folds branching, forming anastomosing pores.
=Spores= elliptical, hyaline, minute, 4–5×2.5–3µ.
=Pileus= 2–3 in. long, 1.5 in. broad.
Somewhat related to M. tremellosus.
On trunks of beech in woods.
Ohio, _Morgan_; Indiana, _Dr. J.R. Weist_; Mt. Gretna, Pa., November.
_McIlvaine._ Specimens identified by Professor Peck.
Tough, but edible.
FAMILY III.—=HYDNA´CEÆ.=
=Hymenium= inferior or amphigenous (not confined to one surface), from
the first definitely protuberant, spread over persistent spines,
bristles, teeth, tubercles or papilla. _Fries._
While the highest members of this family possess the general form of the
mushroom, others, lacking a stem, recline on the back (resupinate); the
lowest, without even the appearance of a distinct pileus, seem to be
simply spread over the supporting body (effused). In the highest class
the spines or other spore-bearing surface are inferior, _i. e._, below
the pileus; in the others they are of course superior, _i. e._, above
the pileus.
Of the eleven genera but two contain species of food value. Hydnum,
characterized by its acute spines, embraces species which are eaten as
delicacies, and Irpex, distinguished by its somewhat acute teeth growing
from a ridgy hymenium, contains those which may furnish sustenance in
time of need. In Caldesia, bearing spines, the texture is floccose not
fleshy. Sistotrema has a pileus and a central stem, but instead of
spines bears irregular flattened teeth. The remaining genera are
separated by the tubercles, granules, folds, etc., which take the place
of spines or teeth.