CHAPTER VI 



THE WHITE-SPORED AGARICS. 



The spores are white in mass, or sometimes with a faint yellow- 

 ish or lilac tinge. For analytical keys to the genera see Chapter 

 XXII. 



AMANITA Pers. 



The genus Amanita has both a volva and a veil ; the spores are 

 white, and the stem is easily separable from the cap. In the young 

 stage the volva forms a universal veil, that is, a layer of fungus 

 tissue which entirely envelops the young plant. In the button 

 stage, where this envelope runs over the cap, it is more or less free 

 from it, that is, it is not " concrete " with the surface of the pileus. 

 As the pileus expands and the stem elongates, the volva is ruptured 

 in different ways according to the species. In some the volva splits 

 at the apex and is left as a ** cup" at the base of the stem. In 

 others it splits circularly, that is, transversely across the middle, the 

 lower half forming a shallow cup with a very narrow rim, or in other 

 cases it is closely fitted against the stem, while the upper half 

 remains on the cap and is broken up into patches or warts. In still 

 other cases the volva breaks irregularly, and only remnants of 

 it may be found on either the base of the stem or on the pileus. For 

 the various conditions one must consult the descriptions of the 

 species. The genus is closely related to Lepiota, from which it is 

 separated by the volva being separate from the pileus. This genus 

 contains some of the most deadly poisonous mushrooms, and also 

 some of the species are edible. Morgan, Jour. Mycol. 3: 25-33, 

 describes 28 species. Peck, 33d Report N. Y. State Mus., pp. 38-49, 

 describes 14 species. Lloyd, A Compilation of the Volvas of the U. 

 S., Cincinnati, 1898, gives a brief synopsis of our species. 



Amanita muscaria Linn. Poisonous. This plant in some places is 

 popularly known as the fly agaric, since infusions of it are used as a 

 fly poison. It occurs during the summer and early autumn. It grows 

 along roadsides near trees, or in groves, and in woods, according to 

 some preferring a rather poor gravelly soil. It attains its typical 

 form usually under these conditions in groves or rather open woods 

 where the soil is poor. It is a handsome and striking plant because 



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