CLASSIFICATION OF AGARICS 



are known to be markedly poisonous, /. inflda Pk., /. in-- 



I'k., /. fibrosa I !i«'s.. etc. 

 The PILEUS baa a cuticle composed of radiating, parallel fibrils, 



which breaks up more or lees during develo] nl and in age 



as to form minute radiating cracks (rimose), or -till m< t<> 



form fibrillose Bcales, which in some species become recurved (squar 

 rose-scaly) ; in others, the surface fibrils remain more or less Inter 

 woven ami do not become rimose; in ;i f<-w Bpecies the cuticle li 

 first viscid. These different modes of adjustment of the fibrils 

 form a basis for a division of the Bpeciea into sections. The color 

 of the cap is rarely bright, it is mostly of whitish, ochraceoui 



isli or brownish shades; /. frumetltacea and its \,iriet\ innimi, 



have sometimes a beautiful vinaceous or purple color, and 

 are well-marked by it. others, like /. pyriodora, have a 

 characteristic pinkish tint to the flesh as they grow older. 



In most eases, however, color-descriptions are apl to DC 



confusing, as the shades of brown, fawn, gray, or ochra- 

 ceous vary in the same species and the same plants. For a 

 satisfactory study of this group, the Interested atudenl Bhould 

 attempt to make colored sketches of the species be finds, accom 

 panied by spore and cystidia drawings. It is practically impossible 

 to be sure of a species of this jjenus without the use of the micro- 

 scope. The GILLS may be adnexed or almost \'vt- t -. occasionally 

 entirely free; adnate to subdecurrent in a few specie-. The color 

 of the mature plls is usually of a dull, sordid or pale Fuscous, hard 

 to describe, but characteristic for many of the Rpecies, bo thai one 

 soon learns to distinguish an [nocybe by the tints of the gills. The 

 color of the gills is very similar to that of the genus Bebeloi 

 However, it may vary in some species to brown, yellow or olil 



shades, and in one species becomes clingy purplish. A few h 



been described with pale violet or blue gills when yOUUg, but 



usually the young gills are whitish. The STEM is fibrous, usually 

 rather rigid at maturity, its surface varying from Blightl] rilky 

 to fibrillose or squarrose-scaly. In the last case the Btem is some 

 what peronate or sheathed by the remains of the flbrillosi 

 covering which was continuous in the young planl from . 

 stem; such species belong to the "Squarrosae" Bection. 

 of the stem is usually mealy or BCUrfy. It m.i.\ be Stuffed and 1 



hollow, but most species have a solid stem. Some Bpe< fell 



marked by the striking color of the lower part of the stem. 

 of /. calamistrata Pr. has a dart greenish blue base The b 

 the stem of /. hirsuta Lasch., is Baid to be bright green; this 



has not been found with us. in /. cincinnata Ft., th< 



