1900] Webster, —Tricholoma portentosum 243 
and cleistogamous flowers. This form has been observed at various 
points in New England, and always at places where the typical form 
is also known to occur. As it presented no difference of foliage, its 
status as a variety has been subject to suspicion. Some months 
ago Mrs. H. A. Penniman of South Braintree, Massachusetts, having 
detected its peculiar character, sent specimens of the variety adortiva 
to the Gray Herbarium. On learning of its doubtful status, she 
undertook a careful observation of the variety and species as they 
occurred about her summer home at Brewster, Massachusetts. She 
has now found that individuals, which during the spring and 
summer exhibit the character of the typical form, frequently, if not 
normally, develop, in early autumn, the cleistogamous racemes from 
their upper axils and become transformed into the so-called var. 
abortiva. This is accordingly shown to be merely a late state of 
the typical plant, fully analagous, in fact, to the autumnal cleis- 
togamous state of our common violets. Mrs. Penniman's observa- 
tions are substantiated by an excellent suite of specimens deposited 
in the Gray Herbarium. — B. L. ROBINSON. 
TRICHOLOMA PORTENTOSUM. 
H. WEBSTER. 
Amonc the species of Tricholoma which have come into favor 
with the mycophagists of eastern Massachusetts is Zricholoma porten- 
fosum Fries, an edible toadstool which is usually abundant in late au- 
tumn, when, as was the case this year, October and half of November 
pass without the coming of severe frost. Practically confined to 
pine woods, or at least to woods of coniferous trees, it there appears 
in such quantities as in many places to alter the look of the needle- 
strewn ground. At intervals of a few yards the pine needles are 
pushed up from below in loose heaps, beneath which clumps of the 
gray-topped mushrooms stand in a measure protected from the frost; 
or the caps are raised quite through the needles and the thick white 
or yellowish white stems stand out against the brown background. 
As the caps are sticky at first, they carry up with them some of the pine 
needles, which remain firmly attached even after the surface has be- 
come quite dry. In woods where the carpet of needles is soft and 
thick, however, the fungus does not so plainly betray its presence, ex- 
