110 MUSHEOOMS. 



White. 



LEPIOTA NAUCmOIDES = a nut sheU. 

 The Smootli Lepiota. 



Cap a clear white, with sometimes a brown- 

 ish tint on the disc, 2 to 4 inches broad, smooth. 

 Stem 1 to 3 inches long, /^ to J^ inch thick, 

 growing thicker toward the base, as if it had 

 a bulb, white, hollow, but stuffed with a cottony- 

 pith. Gills white, when old they assume a 

 pinkish-brownish hue. Ring has a thick, ex- 

 ternal edge, but its inner edge is so thin that it 

 often breaks from the stem and becomes mov- 

 able. It is found in the fields, by roadsides, or 

 in the woods, from August to November. We 

 have not seen a specimen of this mushroom, 

 which is said to be nearly equal to the common 

 mushroom in edible qualities. It is considered 

 to resemble it also in appearance, but Professor 

 Peck says the different color of the gills when 

 the plants are both young will distinguish 

 them, and the thin collar and stuffed stem of 

 L. naucinoides is also different from thick-edged 

 ring and hollow stem of A. campestris. (Psal- 

 liota.) 



