THE ROSY-SPORED AGARICS 



241 



Volvaria umbonata. Peck. 



The Umbonate Volvaria. 



Umbonata, having an umbo or conical projection like the boss of a shield. 

 This plant is quite common on the richly manured lawns of Chillicothe. I have 

 found it from June to October. The pileus is white or whitish, sometimes grayish, 

 often smoky on the umbo; globose when young, bell-shaped, plane when fully 

 expanded, umbonate, smooth ; slightly viscid when moist, shining when dry, inch 

 to an inch and a half broad. The flesh is white and very soft 



Figure 194. Volvaria umbonata. Two-thirds natural size. Entire plant white and silky. 



The gills are free, white at first, then from flesh-color to a reddish hue from 

 the rosy-colored spores ; some of the gills are dimidiate, somewhat crowded, 

 broader in the middle. 



The stem is two inches to two and a half long, tapering from the base up, 

 smooth, cylindrical, hollow and firm. The volva is always present, free, variously 

 torn, white and sometimes grayish. 



The entire plant is silky when dry. I have found it growing in my buggy 

 shed. It is not abundant, though quite common. I have never eaten it, but I do 

 not doubt its edibility. 



