712 



Handbook of Nature-Study 



^^j^ 



Why? What becomes of the veil 

 over the gills as the mushrooms 

 grow large? 



II. Do you know the difference 

 between mushrooms and toad- 

 Qill; Qill^ stools? Do you know the com- 



adnexed. decurrent. mon edible mushroom when you 



see it? What characters separate 

 this from the poisonous species ? What is the "death cup, ' ' as it is called, 

 which covers the base of the stem of the most common poisonous species? 



Gills 

 free. 



A common species of puffball, the three at the left showing early stages, the one at the 

 right ripe and discharging spores. 



Photo by G. F. Atkinson. 



PUFFBALLS 



Teacher's Story 



The pufiballs are always interesting to children, because of the ' 'smoke" 

 which issues from them in clouds when they are pressed between thumb 

 and finger. The common species are white or creamy when young; and 

 some of the species are warty or roughened, so that as children we called 

 them "little lambs." They grow on the ground usually, some in wet, 

 shady places, and others, as the giant species, in grassy fields in late 

 summer. This giant puffball always excites interest, when found. It is 

 a smoothish, white, rounded mass, apparently resting on the grass as if 

 thrown there; when lifted it is seen that it has a connection below at its 

 center, through its mycelium threads, which form a network in the soil. 

 It is often a foot in diameter, and specimens four feet through have been 

 recorded. When its meat is solid and white to the very center, it makes 

 very good food. The skin should be pared off, the meat sliced and 

 sprinkled with salt and pepper and fried in hot fat until browned. All 

 the puffballs are edible, but ignorant persons might mistake the button 

 stages of some of the poisonous mushrooms for little puffballs, and it is not 

 well to encourage the use of small puffballs for the table. 



