CLASSIFICATION OF AGARICS 127 



JVyctaVis asteropliora, as shown in the illustratiou. It is usually a 

 rather large, tirm plant, distinguished from the following by the 

 subdistant, thick gills. The flesh of all parts when bruised turns 

 first reddish then blackish, but the red stain may not appear in 

 old plants ; this is to be expected because of the drying up of the 

 scant}' juice which is supposed to cause this phenomenon where it 

 is exposed to the air. Peck, Mcllvaiue and others have eaten it 

 and consider it fairly good. 



101. Russula densifolia Seer. (Edible) 



Mycographie I, 1833. 



Illustrations: Cooke, 111., PL 1017. 



Gillet, Champignons de France, No. 60S. 



Patouillard, Tab. Analyt., No. 319. 



Hard, Mushrooms, Figs. 157 and 145, 1908. 



Kauffman, Mich. Acad. Sci. Eep. 11, Fig. 1, op. p. 90, 1909. 



PILEUS 5-12 cm. broad, somewhat firm, convex then depressed 

 to subinfundibuliform, margin at first incurved then elevated, dull 

 whitish at first, soon clouded with pale smoky-hrown, without a 

 pellicle, usually suhviscid, even, pruinose when dry. FLESH com- 

 pact, thick, grayish-white, pale smoky in age, changing to reddish 

 when bruised, then hlacMsh. GILLS narrowly adnate to subdecur- 

 rent, rather narroio, thick, crowded then close, alternately long 

 and short, few forked, subvenose, whitish soon dingy grayish, red- 

 dish when bruised then black. STEM 5-6 cm. long, 1.5-2.5 cm. thick, 

 stout, equal or tapering downward, rigid, spongy-solid, whitish then 

 cinereous, soon dark ashy within, turning reddish then hlacMsh 

 where bruised, obscurely wrinkled, glabrous or subpruinose. 

 SPOKES globose, coarsely reticulate, 7-9x6-8 micr., white in mass. 

 STERILE CELLS on edge of gills, hyaline, slender, flexuous, 

 acuminate, 60x3-4 micr., abundant. TASTE slowly acrid in fresh 

 plant. ODOR none. 



Gregarious, subcaespitose or solitary. On the ground in fron- 

 dose woods among fallen leaves. Ann Arbor, Detroit, Palmyra. 

 July-September. Usually rare, but abundant in August, 1912, in 

 oak woods at Ann Arbor. 



As pointed out by Peck, the American plant is slightly subviscid 

 on the cap but this character is easily overlooked. The viscidity 

 is slight, even after rains. It comes nearest to R. adusta, in size, 



