THE CORAL FUNGI 



471 



Clavaria pistillaris. L. 

 Indian-Club Clavaria. Edible. 



Pistillaris is from pistillum, a pestle. 



They are simple, large, stuffed, fleshy, everywhere smooth, three to ten inches 

 high, attaining to one inch in thickness ; light yellow, ochraceous, brownish, 

 chocolate, club-shaped, ovate-rounded, puckered at the top ; flesh white, spongy, 

 The spores are white, 10x5/*. 



Figure 396. Clavaria pistillaris. One-half natural size. 



They are found in the leaf-mold of mixed woods, and you will sometimes 

 find several growing together. They are found from July to frost. 



The dark variety, which is frequently vertically wrinkled, is slightly acrid 

 when raw, but this disappears upon cooking. The plant is widely distributed but 

 abundant nowhere in our state. I found it occasionally in the woods near Chilli- 

 cothe. The plants in Figure 396 were found near Columbus, and were photo- 

 graphed by Dr. Kellerman of Ohio State University. 



