REPORT OF THE STATE BOTANIST I909 7 



features. These conditions were decidedly unfavorable to wild 

 mushroom growth. Scarcely any could be found except the few 

 that naturally inhabit swamps and low wet ground in woods. 

 In the latter part of the season gentle rains moistened the sur- 

 face of the ground sufficiently to insure the development of 

 good agricultural crops and a fair seasonable crop of some mush- 

 rooms. But the effect upon the common mushroom, A g a r i - 

 cus cam pester and its variety, the garden mushroom, 

 Agaric us campester hortensis, is worthy of spe- 

 cial notice. In the vicinity of Albany a gentle and prolonged 

 rain, the latter part of August, moistened the surface of the 

 ground quite effectually. In a few days the common mushroom 

 appeared in unusual abundance, though it was a little earlier in 

 the season than it usually appears. The mushrooms were so 

 plentiful that at least one fruit dealer offered them for sale in 

 quart baskets at his fruit stand. A few weeks later light showers 

 were followed by a copious crop of the " garden mushroom," 

 a form differing from the common mushroom in having its cap 

 adorned with brownish fibrils which form small spotlike scales 

 on it and give it a darker color than that of the white form of 

 the common mushroom. This crop continued to develop freely 

 for several days and grew in some instances in pastures of light 

 sandy soil where mushrooms are not usually expected to grow. 

 The same abundant appearance of the edible mushroom was re- 

 ported to have followed the light autumnal showers in other 

 localities in the State. The lesson it teaches is that for mush- 

 room production gentle showers are better than torrents of rain. 



The number of those who have sent or brought specimens of 

 plants to the office of the botanist for identification is 152. The 

 number of identifications made is 1 717. 



Mr S. H. Burnham, my assistant, in addition to his other duties, 

 has prepared a list of the names of the edible, poisonous and un- 

 wholesome species of mushrooms hitherto figured and described in 

 the publications of the museum, together with the citations of the 

 time and place of publication of each. He has also prepared a list 

 of the genera of fungi of which the New York species (chiefly) 

 have been described as far as known in previous reports. The time 

 and place of these limited monographic publications are cited. Both 

 these lists may be found at the end of this report. 



Charles H. Peck 



State Botanist 



Albany, December 24, ipop 



