62 [Assembly 



places. It is more abundant in autumn, but occasionally appears as 

 early as June. It is no less valuable than the next species for its edible 

 qualities. A stew made of it is a very good substitute for an oyster stew. 



In Hungary, according to Dr. Kalchbrenner, it is not only eagerly 

 sought for food in the woods but is also cultivated in gardens by fre- 

 quently moistening the elm trunks on which ifc grows. 



In drying, the specimens roll up in an annoying manner, unless kept 

 under pressure. The dried specimens are very liable to the attacks 

 of insects. 



Pleurotus ostreatus, Fr. 



Oyster Agaric. Oyster Mushroom. 



Agaricus ostreatus, Jacq. Agaricus dimidiatiis, Bull. 



Pileus fleshy, two to four inches broad, soft, convex or slightly 

 depressed behind, subdimidiate, often csspitosely imbricated, moist, 

 glabrous, whitish cinereous or brownish, flesh white ; lamellae broad, 

 decurrent, subdistant, anastomosing at the base, white or whitish ; 

 stem, when present, very short, firm, lateral, sometimes strigose-hairy 

 at the base ; spores oblong, wAiYe, .0003 to .0004 in. long, .00016 

 broad. 



Decaying wood and trunks of trees. June to !N^ovember. Edible. 



With us this species is much less frequent than the preceding one. 

 Specimens, nearly white when fresh, but yellowish when dried, were 

 collected on oak trunks in Orange county. Tiie spores were clearly 

 white on white paper, but in other respects the plants miglit readily 

 be taken for a whitish subsessile form of the preceding species. 



Pleurotus salignus, Fr. 



Willow Agaric. 



Agaricus salignus, Abb. d. Schw. Agaricus hrumalis, Scop. 



Pileus fleshy, two to six inches broad, firm, spongy, convex or nearly 

 plane, sometimes depressed and slightly hairy toward the base, nearly 

 dimidiate, horizontal, whitish, dark-cinereous or ochraceous ; lamellaa 

 decurrent, some of them branched, eroded on die edge, distinct at the 

 base, whitish ; stem, when present, very short, lateral, tomentose ; 

 spores oblong, .00086 in, long, .00015 broad. 



Decaying wood, especially of willows. Sandlake. 



I have admitted this species with some hesitation, for our specimens, 

 though apparently belonging to it, are not in good condition and 

 hence doubtful. Fries says it is distinguished from Fames conchatus 

 by its soft, not coriaceous, substance, but Gillet characterizes its sub- 

 stance as coriaceous when old. 



Fileus definitely lateral, neither margined behind nor at first resupi- 

 nate, sessile or attached to a very short lateral stem or stem-like base. 



Pleurotus serotinus, Fr. 

 Late Agaric. 



Agaricus serotinus Sclirad. Agaricus serotijioides, Pk. 

 Pileus fleshy, one to three inches broad, compact, convex or nearly 

 plane, viscid when young and moist, dimidiate reniform or suborbic- 



