1044 



MUSHROOM 



MUSHROOM 



Coprinits comatus, the Shaggy-mane Mushroom, or 

 Horse-Tail, occurs in richly manured lawns or parks iu 

 early spring or late autumn. It is white in color, with 

 a cylindrical cap 3-4 in. long and 1-2 in. in diameter. 

 The cap is very shaggy, the scales often being black in 

 color, while the gills are at first salmon color. The ring 

 on the stem is free and movable, It is one of the best 

 of the edible Mushrooms. 



Coprinus atramenturiii.i, the Ink-cap, grows in similar 

 places. The cap is oval, from 1-3 in. long and nearly as 

 wide. It is nearly smooth, and grayish in color. The 

 ring is fixed and not at all prominent; best seen just as 

 the margin of the cap is parting from the stem. 



Coprinus micacftifs, the glistening Coprinus, grows 

 about old stumps and from old roots or other buried and 

 rotten wood. It is snuiUcr than the two species enumer- 

 ated above, and laii in color, the cap when fresh being 

 covered with thin, louse, flaky scales which glisten iu 

 the sunlight like mica particles, but they are easily 

 rubbed oil or washed off by rains. 



Lepiota. — Of the white-spored agarics the genus 

 Lepiota, with an annulus on the stem aud the gills usu- 

 ally free from the 

 stem, contains sev- 

 eral edible species. 

 Li'piofa procera, the 

 Parasol Mushroom, 

 grows in pastures, 

 lawns, and sometimes 

 in gardens. Lepiota 

 nnucina, the smooth 

 Lepiota, grows in 

 similar places and 

 is entirely white. 



Amanita . — The 

 genus Amanita is 

 closely related to Le- 

 piota, and contains, 

 besides several edible 

 species, a number of 

 poisonous ones, a few 

 of which are the most 

 deadly of all the 

 Mushrooms. Amanita 

 possesses the charac- 

 ters of Li|,i..ta, with 

 tlR-a.:.lili..iialcharai'- 

 ter of a volva, or 

 prominent universal 

 veil, forming an outer 

 layer of greater or 

 lesser thickness and 

 comiiositi^in, which is 

 ruptured as the cap 

 expands and the stem 

 elongates. In Lepio- 

 ta the universal veil 

 is not prominent, and 

 it is further closely 

 united with the sur- 

 face of the cap. The 

 volva in Amanita is 

 often left as a prominent cup-like structure at the base 

 of the stem (see Fig. 1443), and because it is present in 

 some of the poisonous species is known popularly as 

 the "poison cup," "death cup," etc. It is present, how- 

 ever, in some of the edible species. 



Amanita phalloicles, the deadly Amanita (Fig. 1443), 

 is one of the most fatal species. It is 4 to 6 in. high, 

 and the cap is 2 to 4 in. in diameter. The cap is dark 

 gray or umber, or whitish with a yellowish tinge, or 

 ((uite yellow, or in some forms, especially European 

 ones, the cap i.s green. In other cases the whole plant 

 may be entirely white. The volva in typical forms splits 

 at the apex as the young plant is expanding, and is left 

 as a cup with prominent lobes, as shown in Fig. 1443. In 

 other cases the volva is ruptured irregularly, so that 

 portions of the universal veil are left on the .surface of 

 the cap. In still other cases the volva splits in a cir- 

 cumscissile fashion, that is, circularly or transversely 

 about the middle, the lower half remaining attached to 

 the surface of the bulb at the base of the stem, while 

 the upper half renuiins loosely attached to the upper 



1443. The deadly Amanil 

 Amanita phalloides. 



.surface of the cap, and is torn apart into scales as the 

 cap expands. In these forms the volva forms a narrow 

 rim or margin on the outer angle of the bulb, so that the 

 latter appears saucer-shaped. The cap is rather slimy 

 when moist. These great variations in this very poi- 

 sonous species should make the novice very cautious 

 regarding the species of Amanita, or indeed any species 

 of Mushroom with which he is not quite familiar. 

 This species of Amanita usually occurs in woods or 

 groves or in the margins of woods, while the Agaricus 

 canipestris or the l/epiotn nuuciua occur usually in 

 open grassy places. But these differences of habitat 

 cannot be relied on altogether, for the deadly Amanita, 

 especially the white form, has been found in lawns far 

 from woods, and in such cases might be mistaken for 

 the smooth Lepiota, since this is white in color. The 

 deadly Amanita is usually deeply seated in the ground, 

 so that the stem might be broken in gathering it when 

 the volva would be left in the ground, and it might eas- 

 ily be mistaken for some species of Lepiota. 



Amnnila verna, the Destroying Angel, is by some re- 

 garded as only a white variety of A. phalloides. The 

 entire plant is white, the volva splits at the apex, and 

 thus a prominent free limb of about three lobes remains 

 at the base of the stem. The free limb remains more or 

 less closely applied to the stem. The annulus is broad 

 and entire, and hangs down as a broad collar from the 

 upper part of the stem. 



Aynavifa virosa is very near A. verna. It is distin- 

 guished only by the torn veil, portions of which remain 

 clinging to the margin of the cap, and by the scaly char- 

 acter of the stem, characters which show every grada- 

 tion into A. verna. Both are deadly poisonous. 



Aynanita tmiscaria, the Fly Agaric, is also a poisonous 

 species, though not so dangerous as those named above, 

 since the poisonous effect can be counteracted if treat- 

 ment is promptly employed. The volva splits trans- 

 versely into several concentric, interrupted rings which 

 persist a-i scaly rings on the upper part of the bulb on 

 the basi' of tlie stt-m, and as scattered scales on the sur- 

 face of tile cap. The cap is yellowish or orange-yellow, 

 sometimes red in color, and in age sometimes fades out 

 so that white forms appear. The gills are usually white, 

 as are also the ring and the stem. Amanita J^^rosfiana 

 is a closely related species with the same color on the 

 cap, but with yellowish gills and veil, though variations 

 in the color are shown in different plants when the cap 

 only may be yellow. The scales are usually yellow, but 

 may also be white. 



Of the edible species may be mentioned Amanita 

 Ccpsarta, the "Royal Agaric" or "Csesar's Agaric." The 

 cap is bright orange or yellow, with prominent striae or 

 furrows on the margin. The gills are orange, though 

 the spores are white. The veil and stem are often yel- 

 low, especially in the larger specimens. The volva splits 

 at the apex and is left at the base of the stem as a cup 

 with a prominent free limb, which usually fits closely to 

 the stem. The volva is white, and rarely are portions of 

 it left on the surface of the cap. It is a very beautiful 

 species, occurring during late summer and autumn in 

 woods, and is more common in the southern states than 

 north, 



Amanita ritbescens, another edible species, has a 

 volva which is more or less friable, that is, it crumbles 

 more or less into loose particles which easily wash off 

 from the cap as well as from the base of the stem. The 

 entire plant has a dull reddish tinge, and when bruised 

 or cut quickly changes to a deeper reddish color due to 

 a reddish juice in the plant. Small forms of the species 

 do not show the color so well. 



Amanita solilaria, the Solitary Amanita, is one of the 

 largest species of the genus. It is almost pure white, 

 the surface of the cap often being grayish, and some- 

 times with tints of brown in the scales, especially in old 

 plants. It grows in rather open woods or by roadsides 

 in woods. The volva is entirely broken up into mealy 

 particles which easily rub off, or there are conic scales, 

 especially toward the center of the cap. The veil is very 

 delicate and easily torn into shreds, which disappear 

 soon. The stem has a large bulb, which tapers into a 

 long, root-like process in the soil. The plant is said by 

 some to be edible. Amanita strobiliformis is a closely 

 related species, if it is not identical with it, and is said 



