THE MEADOW MUSHROOM. 3 I 



IV.— THE MEADOW MUSHROOM. 



NEXT in importance to the common mushroom, and 

 often confounded with it, is the meadow mushroom 

 {Agaricus arvensis), sometimes called, by way of 

 distinction, the horse mushroom, a name most 

 common in rural districts. Country people generally 

 discriminate between these two species, and hold 

 that whilst it is larger, and more imposing, the horse 

 mushroom is not so good to eat, but that it is 

 stronger and better for making ketchup than the 

 genuine mushroom. There are some persons who 

 contend that, for all purposes, the fuller flavour of the 

 meadow mushroom makes it preferable to the smaller 

 species found in parks and lawns, or by the roadside. 

 The distinctions between them, beside the places in 

 which they grow, are that the cap of the horse 

 mushroom, when expanded, is sometimes as large as 

 a dessert plate, often six inches, and quite smooth, 

 having the texture of a good kid glove. They are 

 more gregarious in habit, sometimes forming large 

 rings; or parts of rings, and the gills are not at first 

 pink, but dirty white. When cut or bruised the flesh 

 turns yellowish brown, more or less deep, and in age 

 the gills are almost black. This is the kind most 

 commonly exposed for sale at greengrocers' shops in 

 London and its vicinity, and undoubtedly is the 



