Coprinus ink
Like the foregoing, a large cluster of these mushrooms leaves a most unsightly spot on the lawn. A diluted solution of this melting substance, as Cooke assures us, has been used "to replenish the ink-bottle. The resemblance is so complete that it may readily be employed as a substitute, all that is required being to boil and strain it, and add a small quantity of corrosive sublimate to prevent its turning mouldy." It may also be employed as pigment. It is, indeed, quite possible to paint the portrait of Coprinus with its own dark sepia, as the author has personally demonstrated. (Seehead-piece to "Illustrations".)
Lactarius deliciosus
Orange-milk Agaric
Prominent among the fungi which give unmistakable characters for their identification is the genus Lactarius, or milky mushrooms, another group of the agarics or gilled fungi, from which we will select for our first example theLactarius deliciosus, or orange-milk Agaric (Plate 18). The figure will itself almost serve to identify it in its advanced open stage. Having found a specimen resembling our illustration, and anywhere from three to five inches in expanse, its general upper surfacedull reddish-orangein color, more or less plainly banded with darker red, it is safe to predict that when its surface or gills are broken an exudation of milky juice will follow. If this exudation is orange ordeep yellowin hue, gradually turninggreenishon exposure, the identification is complete, and we have the orange-milkL. deliciosus, of which an authority says, "It really deserves its name, being the most delicious mushroom known." W. G. Smith goes still further in its praise, assuring us that "when cooked with taste and care it is one of the greatest delicacies of the vegetable kingdom." The taste of this species when raw is slightly acrid, but this quality disappears in the cooking.
PLATE XVIIITHE ORANGE-MILK MUSHROOM
Lactarius deliciosus
Pileus:Diameter three to five inches. Color varying from yellow to dull orange, or even brownish yellow with mottled zones of deeper color, especially in younger plants; outline at first convex, ultimately somewhat funnel-shaped; surface usually smooth and moist.Flesh:Brittle; creamy, more or less stained with orange.Gills:Orange; generally clearer in hue than the pileus; when bruised, exuding a copious milky juice of orange color, becoming greenish in drying.Stem:Paler than pileus; hollow; occasionally spotted with orange or greenish stains from bruises.Spores:White.Taste:Slightly peppery.Habitat:Woods, pine-groves, and swamps.Season:July-September.
Pileus:Diameter three to five inches. Color varying from yellow to dull orange, or even brownish yellow with mottled zones of deeper color, especially in younger plants; outline at first convex, ultimately somewhat funnel-shaped; surface usually smooth and moist.
Flesh:Brittle; creamy, more or less stained with orange.
Gills:Orange; generally clearer in hue than the pileus; when bruised, exuding a copious milky juice of orange color, becoming greenish in drying.
Stem:Paler than pileus; hollow; occasionally spotted with orange or greenish stains from bruises.
Spores:White.
Taste:Slightly peppery.
Habitat:Woods, pine-groves, and swamps.
Season:July-September.
PLATE XVIII
Lactarius Deliciosus.
Mild white-milk species
One other species of Lactarius,L. volemum, may properly find a place in this work as being easily recognized. In general shape it resemblesL. deliciosus. The top is of a rich sienna golden hue; the gills are crowded. The milk iswhiteas it first falls from the fracture, becomingdull dark-reddish, and having a mild, pleasant taste; gills white, at length yellowish or buff-colored. This species is esculent.
Peppery white-milk species
Other species are accounted edible, even one—the peppery Lactarius,L. piperatus—a pure-white variety, whose copious exudations ofwhitemilk will almost blister the lips, anacridproperty which is claimed by Curtis, Smith, and others to be dispelled in cooking, by which treatment it becomes delicious and wholesome.
This species may reach a diameter of seven inches, its shape at first rounded, convex, then flat, concave, and finally funnel-shaped, as in many of the species. But its decidedly ardent tang in the raw state, as reminiscent from my own experience, warns me not to dwell too enthusiastically upon its merits in my limited selection of desirable esculent species.
Cantharellus cibarius
Fluted gills
Bearing somewhat the shape of the Lactarius, but having its own distinguishing features, is the Chantarelle (Plate 19).
The "Agarics," as already described onpage 79, are distinguished by the feature of the gills, or thin laminated curtains—thehymenium—upon which the spores are produced, and from which they are shed beneath the mushroom. These gills vary in thickness and number in the various species, and in one genus are so short, thick, swollen, and branched as to give rather the effect of turgid veins than gills, as shown in the accompanying sectional drawing. We occasionally come upon one of these mushrooms in our walks, usually in the woods. When it first appears the cap is rounded, and the rim folded inward towards the stem; but in mature specimens it assumes the flat or, later, the cup-shaped form shown in Plate 19.
PLATE XIXTHE CHANTARELLE
Cantharellus cibarius
Pileus:At first convex, later flat; three to five inches in diameter, with central hollow, and finally almost funnel form. Color, bright to deep yellow above and below.Gills:Shallow and fluted, resembling swollen veins, branched, more or less interconnected and tapering off down the stem; color same as pileus.Stem:Solid, generally (often slightly) tapering towards base; paler than pileus or gills.Spores:Very pale yellow ochre in color; elliptical.Taste:Peppery and pungent in the raw state; mild and sweet after cooking.Odor:Suggesting ripe apricots or plums.Habitat:In woods, especially hemlocks, generally in clusters of two or three, or in lines or arcs of several individuals.
Pileus:At first convex, later flat; three to five inches in diameter, with central hollow, and finally almost funnel form. Color, bright to deep yellow above and below.
Gills:Shallow and fluted, resembling swollen veins, branched, more or less interconnected and tapering off down the stem; color same as pileus.
Stem:Solid, generally (often slightly) tapering towards base; paler than pileus or gills.
Spores:Very pale yellow ochre in color; elliptical.
Taste:Peppery and pungent in the raw state; mild and sweet after cooking.
Odor:Suggesting ripe apricots or plums.
Habitat:In woods, especially hemlocks, generally in clusters of two or three, or in lines or arcs of several individuals.
PLATE XIX
Cantharellus Cibarius.
Botanical characters
A fungus thus formed is a Chantarelle, orCantharellus, and is readily identified. Any specimen having these features, and which possesses in addition a fine, rich yellow color, is theC. cibariusof our plate, the esculent morsel so highly prized by epicures on the Continent, where to many—perhaps somewhat indiscriminating—gastronomists it forms one of the greatest delicacies among the entire list of edible fungi. The diameter of the mature specimen may reach five inches, though three inches will be nearer the average size. The cap is frequently quite eccentric in its form, wavy-edged, or even folded upon itself in occasional individuals; but the pure, deep yellow color "suggesting the yolk of an egg," and the swollen, vein-like hymenium, generally of a similar color, will be sufficient to distinguish it under any disguise of mere form. Another unique characteristic is its odor, which suggests ripe apricots or plums. The taste of the Chantarelle when raw is pungent and peppery, but this quality disappears in cooking. The spores are of a pale yellow-ochre color, and beneath the microscope are elliptical in shape.
Stewed Chantarelle
From the last of May until early November the Chantarelle may be found in our woods, with more or less frequency, singly or in clusters. According to Dr. Badham, an eminent authority on esculent fungi, "the best ways of dressing the Chantarelle are to stew or mince it by itself, or to combine it with meat or with other fungi. It requires long and gentle stewing to make it tender, but by soaking it in milk the night before, less cooking will be requisite."
But the recipes employed in Great Britain and upon the Continent to the glory of the Chantarelle would almost fill a fair-sized receipt book, and some of them are quite elaborate. A few of these are given in a later chapter. After a trial of a number of them the writer is assured that the simple broiling or frying in butter or oil, with proper seasoning, and serving on toast, will prove a most acceptable substitute.
Another species
Another species of Chantarelle, which might possibly be confounded with theC. cibarius, is the Orange Chantarelle,C. aurantiacus, which is pronounced "scarcely esculent" by the authorities. Its average size is much smaller than the true Chantarelle, and its much deeper orange hue, and straighter, more regularly branched and crowded gills, will readily identify it, the gills ofcibariusbeing thicker, and usually somewhat eccentric and netted. Like the foregoing, it assumes the funnel form with age, as indicated in the generic name, Cantharellus—"a diminutive drinking-cup."
Works by Prof. Peck
T
The previous examples of mushrooms have all been included in the order of the Agarics, or "gill-bearing" fungi, the under spore-bearing surface of the cap having been disposed in the form of laminæ or gills. We will now pass to the consideration of a class of mushrooms certain of which enjoy a wider reputation as "toadstools" than any other species, a new botanical order of fungi—the Polyporei—in which the gills are replaced byporesor tubes—polyporus (many pores). Conspicuous among the Polyporei are those great shelf-like woody growths so frequently to be seen on the trunks of trees, and popularly known as "punk," "tinder," and "touch-wood," and many of which increase in size year by year by accession of growth at the rim. A few of these lateral-stemmed species are edible during their young state, one or two of which are included in my subsequent pages. But the most notable group from the standpoint of esculence is the typical genusBoletus, containing a large number of species, and of whichPlate 20presents a conspicuous example. Especial attention should here be called to the notablemonograph on the Boleti of the United States by State Botanist Professor Charles Peck, of Albany University, New York, which presents detailed descriptions of one hundred and eight indigenous species. Other contributions to mycological literature by this distinguished American authority are noted in my bibliographical list at the close of the volume.
Tube mushrooms
The structure of these mushrooms is clearly shown inPlate 38, in my chapter on "Spore-prints," the hymenium being here spread upon the honey-combed pore surfaces, and shedding its spores from the tubes. Each of these tubes is distinct and may be separated from the mass.
The ideal form as shown inPlate 20is perfectly symmetrical, in which condition the pores would naturally be perpendicular. But this perfection seldom prevails, and we continually find the specimens more or less eccentric in shape, especially where they are crowded or have met with obstruction in growth. But in any case, no matter what the angle or distortion of growth during development, thetubesare always adjusted to the perpendicular, or in malformed individuals as nearly so as the conditions will permit, as shown in the section on next page.
The Boleti are in general a salubrious group. Certain species have long been accredited as being poisonous, and others excluded from the feast as "suspicious." The early authorities caution us to avoidall Boleti having any shade of red on the spore-bearing surface beneath, even as it was originally claimed that allred-cappedtoadstools were poisonous. But from the writer's own individual experiments, reinforced by the experience of others, he is beginning to be persuaded that the Boletus as agenushas been maligned. Many species accredited as poisonous he has eaten repeatedly without the slightest deleterious consequences, including the crimson Boletus,B. alveolatus(Plate 24, fig. 2), with its red spore surface, and theB. subtomentosus(Plate 22, fig. 1), whose yellowish flesh, like the species just mentioned, changes quickly to blue upon fracture, a chemical feature which has long stamped both species as dangerous.
SECTION OF BOLETUS SHOWING PERPENDICULAR TUBES
Maligned species
It is interesting to note that the ban is gradually being lifted from the Boleti by mycophagists of distinction, largely through their own experiments. Thus I note that Mr. McIlvaine, who has made a close study of esculent fungi, in a recent article claims that "all the Boleti are harmless, though some are too bitter to eat"; and Mr. Palmer, in his admirable portfolio of esculent fungi, includes among his edible species one of those whose flesh "changes color on fracture," and which has hitherto been proscribed as "off color." Of course, this food selection would obviously apply only to species of inviting attributes, possessing pleasant odor, agreeable taste, and delicate fibre. The selection comprised in this volume is confined to a few varieties of established good repute. As to the rest—if only on the consideration of idiosyncrasy—it is wiser to urge extreme caution on the lines laid down onpage 34.
Changes of form in growth
The Boletus, like all other mushrooms, passes through a variety of forms from its birth to maturity, at first being almost round, then convex, with the spore surface nearly flat, horizontal, the profile outline finally almost equally cushion-like on both upper and lower surfaces, or the upper surface absolutely flat. Mere outline drawings of a number of Boleti would be almost identical. The form alone, therefore, is of minor importance in their identification. Among those more readily recognized by their color and structural features, may be classed the following common species:
PLATE XXEDIBLE BOLETUS
Boletus edulis
Pileus:Cushion-like; moist; variable in color, light brown to darker brownish red; surface smooth but dull; dimensions at full expansion, three to six or eight inches.Tube surface(A—magnified): Whitish in very young specimens, at length becoming yellow and yellowish green. Pore openings, angled.Spores:Ochre-colored.Stem:Stout; often disproportionately elongated. Pale brown, generally with a fine raised network of pink lines near junction of cap.Flesh:White or yellowish, not changing color on fracture.Taste:Agreeable and nutty, especially when young.Habitat:Woods, especially during July and August; common.
Pileus:Cushion-like; moist; variable in color, light brown to darker brownish red; surface smooth but dull; dimensions at full expansion, three to six or eight inches.
Tube surface(A—magnified): Whitish in very young specimens, at length becoming yellow and yellowish green. Pore openings, angled.
Spores:Ochre-colored.
Stem:Stout; often disproportionately elongated. Pale brown, generally with a fine raised network of pink lines near junction of cap.
Flesh:White or yellowish, not changing color on fracture.
Taste:Agreeable and nutty, especially when young.
Habitat:Woods, especially during July and August; common.
PLATE XX
Boletus Edulis.
Boletus edulis
A famous delicacy
The most prominent member of the Boleti is the typical species whose portrait I have given on Plate 20, "in vain calling himself 'edulis,' where there were none to believe him." But in spite of this remark of Dr. Badham, which had reference especially to his native country, England, this fungus had long been a favorite article of food among a large class of the more lowly Europeans, to say nothing of the luxurious epicures of the continent.
Boletus edulisis to be found singly or in groups, usually in the woods. Its average diameter is perhaps four or five inches, though specimens are occasionally found of double these dimensions. A letter to the writer from a correspondent in the Rocky Mountains describes specimens measuring fifteen inches in diameter having been found there.
Specific characters
The cushion-like cap is more or less convex, according to age, of a soft brownish or drab color somewhat resembling kid, and with velvety softness to the touch. The under surface or hymenium is thickly beset, honey-combed with minute vertical pores, which will leave a pretty account of themselves upon a piece of white paper laid beneath them and protected from the least draught, a process by which we may always obtain a deposit of the ochre-tinted spores, as is further described in a later chapter.
InBoletus edulisthis pore surface is white in young specimens, later yellow, finally becoming bright olive-green; fleshwhiteorcreamy, unchangeable on fracture. Stem paler than cap, thick, swollen at base, often malformed and elongated, especially when from a cluster, generally more or less covered with vertical raised ridges, which become somewhat netted together and pinkish as they approach the cap. The taste is sweet, and in the very young specimen, which is brittle, quite suggestive of raw chestnut.
Insects and decay
Any Boletus answering this description may be eaten without fear, assuming, of course, that its substance is free from any taint of dissolution and traces of insect contamination. Both of these conditions are too apt to prevail in the mature specimens, and all Boleti are more safely employed for food in their young crisp stage, or at least before their full expansion. In their maturity, moreover, they often prove too mucilaginous in consistency to be pleasant to the average partaker, especially the novice.
Preparation for table
In preparing them for the table, all that is necessary is to cut off the stems, which are apt to be tough and fibrous, and to wipe the pellicle of the cap perfectly clean, or, if preferred, to pare the pileus with a very sharp knife. It is recommended by some that the entire mass of the pore section be removed. In a mature specimen this would reduce the bulk of the mushroom by half, and, moreover, deprive the remainder of the full flavor of the fungus. I have not found it necessary, and it is certainly needless in a young and tender specimen.
PLATE XXIROUGH-STEMMED BOLETUS
Boletus scaber
Pileus:Rounded convex; diameter two to five inches; surface occasionally smooth and viscid when moist; color usually brownish red, but varying from orange brick red or even black in certain varieties to yellow or whitish.Tube surface:Rounded, cushion-like; whitish at first, becoming dingy; tube openings small and round, and rather long as seen in section.Spores:Reddish brown.Stem:Solid, dingy white, tapering slightly above, more or less thickly beset with brownish, fibrous, dot-like scales, this being the most pronounced botanical character for identification.Flesh:White or dingy in certain varieties, often changing to blue, brown, pinkish, or black where wounded.Taste:Negatively pleasant.Habitat:A common and widely distributed species, with many variations of color. Found in woods and shaded waste-places.Season:July-October.
Pileus:Rounded convex; diameter two to five inches; surface occasionally smooth and viscid when moist; color usually brownish red, but varying from orange brick red or even black in certain varieties to yellow or whitish.
Tube surface:Rounded, cushion-like; whitish at first, becoming dingy; tube openings small and round, and rather long as seen in section.
Spores:Reddish brown.
Stem:Solid, dingy white, tapering slightly above, more or less thickly beset with brownish, fibrous, dot-like scales, this being the most pronounced botanical character for identification.
Flesh:White or dingy in certain varieties, often changing to blue, brown, pinkish, or black where wounded.
Taste:Negatively pleasant.
Habitat:A common and widely distributed species, with many variations of color. Found in woods and shaded waste-places.
Season:July-October.
PLATE XXI
Boletus Scaber.
Boletus scaber
This is a very common mushroom in our woods all through the summer and autumn, in reasonably moist weather. It is figured in Plate 21. The cap of an average specimen expands four inches or more, is of a brown or brownish buff color, and viscid when moist. The pore-surface isdingy white, thetubeorifices being quiteminuteandround—not so conspicuously angular or honey-combed as in other species—and with occasional reddish stains, presumably a deposit from the floatingspores, which aretawny reddish. The flesh is dirty white, the stem solid, contracting upwards, and rough with fibrousbrownish scalypoints—whence the name "scaber"—often arranged somewhat in vertical lines. Epicures fail to agree as to the esculent qualities of this mushroom. It is certainly inferior to theedulis.
Boletus subtomentosus
Specific qualities
The general contour of the present species—B. subtomentosus(Plate 22, fig. 1)—resembles the foregoing, but it is easily distinguished by the color of its cap and tube surface, the pileus being usually olive, olive-brown, or red of various shades; the color, however, does not extend to the flesh beneath the peeled cuticle, as inB. chrysenteron, Fig. 2.The surface is soft and dry—subtomentous—to the touch. Cracks in the cap become yellow, on which account this species is called the "yellow-cracked Boletus," in contradistinction to the red-crackedB. chrysenteron. Its most important distinction, however, is of a chemical nature.
The blue stain
The stem is stout, unequal, firm, yellowish, and more or less ribbed, occasionally tinted, minutely dotted, or faintly striped with the color of the cap. The taste of the flesh is sweet and agreeable. Palmer compares it to the flavor of walnuts. The tube surface isyellow or yellowish green, and thetubes and yellowish flesh of cap and stem turn a rich peacock-blue immediately on fracture, becoming deepermoment by moment until the entire exposed portion becomes leaden—especially noticeable in mature specimens. The pore surface shows a similar blue stain whenever bruised. The tubes are angular-sided instead of round, and much larger than in theB. edulis; spores ochre colored.
An unwarranted stigma
This blue stain was formerly, and is even now, deemed sufficient with many mycophagists to place this mushroom on the black-list, but is believed by Mr. Palmer and Mr. McIlvaine to be unwarranted as a stigma, assuming that fresh specimens are employed. TheB. subtomentosusis also among the eleven edible Boleti in the list of Dr. Curtis, given on a previous page, and the present author has habitually eaten the species with enjoyment and without unpleasant results. Fresh young specimens with the least change of color would perhaps be the wiser choice for the novice.
PLATE XXIIYELLOW CRACKED BOLETUS
1.Boletus subtomentosu
Pileus:Diameter three to six inches. Color, varying in different individuals, yellowish brown, olive, or subdued tan color; epidermis soft and dry, with a fine pubescence. Cracks in surface become yellow.Flesh:Creamy white in mature specimens, changing to blue, and at length leaden on fracture.Tube surface:Yellow or yellowish green, becoming bluish when bruised; opening of tubes large and angled.Stem:Stout; yellowish; minutely roughened with scurfy dots, or faintly striped with brown.Spores:Brownish ochre.Taste: Sweet and agreeable.Habitat:Woods.Season: Summer and autumn.
Pileus:Diameter three to six inches. Color, varying in different individuals, yellowish brown, olive, or subdued tan color; epidermis soft and dry, with a fine pubescence. Cracks in surface become yellow.
Flesh:Creamy white in mature specimens, changing to blue, and at length leaden on fracture.
Tube surface:Yellow or yellowish green, becoming bluish when bruised; opening of tubes large and angled.
Stem:Stout; yellowish; minutely roughened with scurfy dots, or faintly striped with brown.
Spores:Brownish ochre.
Taste: Sweet and agreeable.
Habitat:Woods.
Season: Summer and autumn.
GOLDEN-FLESH BOLETUS
2.Boletus chrysenteron
Pileus:Diameter two to four inches; convex, becoming more flattened; soft to the touch, varying from light yellowish brown to bright brick red; more or less fissured with red cracks and clincks.Flesh:Rich, bright yellow, red immediately beneath the cuticle.Tube surface:Olive-yellow, becoming bluish where bruised; tube openings rather large, angled, and unequal in size.Stem:Generally stout and straight; yellowish, and more or less streaked or spotted with the color of the cap.Spores:Light brown.Habitat:Woods and copses.Season:Summer and autumn.
Pileus:Diameter two to four inches; convex, becoming more flattened; soft to the touch, varying from light yellowish brown to bright brick red; more or less fissured with red cracks and clincks.
Flesh:Rich, bright yellow, red immediately beneath the cuticle.
Tube surface:Olive-yellow, becoming bluish where bruised; tube openings rather large, angled, and unequal in size.
Stem:Generally stout and straight; yellowish, and more or less streaked or spotted with the color of the cap.
Spores:Light brown.
Habitat:Woods and copses.
Season:Summer and autumn.
PLATE XXII
Boletus Subtomentosus.B. CHRYSENTERON
Caution advisable
Another species having this peculiar property of "turning blue" even in a more marked degree, and named, in consequence, theB. cyanescens, though always heretofore considered poisonous, is now pronounced by certain prominent mycophagists to be not only harmless but esculent. It is still advisable, however, to caution moderation in its use as food, if only on the ground of idiosyncrasy. The spores of this species arewhite, which, with the more minute tube openings, form a sufficient discrimination fromsubtomentosus. The spores should be obtained by a deposit on black or dark-colored paper. The flesh is white also. Other blue-stain species, such asB. alveolatus(Plate 24), are still considered with suspicion, presumably groundless.
Boletus chrysenteron
Among the toadstools which tradition would surely brand as poisonous on account of "bright color" is the common species whose name heads this paragraph, and which is illustrated in Plate 22, fig. 2. In its various shapes it suggests the preceding varieties. Its cap, however, is brownish red, often brightbrick red.Flesh almost lemon-yellow, stainedred just beneaththe cuticle, andnot noticeably changeableon fracture.Tube surface yellowish green, turning blue or bluish green when bruised. Spores light brown.Tubesratherlarge, angular, andunequal in shape of aperture.Stem yellow, often brightly colored with the red of the cap. Chance cracks in its surface become red, whence the common name of the "Red-cracked Boletus." A species frequent in woods throughout the summer and autumn, and edible.
In its brightly colored cap it might possibly be superficially confounded with the suspiciousBoletus alveolatusofPlate 24. But the latter species is easily distinguished by its rose-colored spores and red pore surface.
Strobilomyces strobilaceus
Botanical characters
Another allied species, not especially famous for its esculent qualities, but which is, nevertheless, not to be despised, is here introduced on account of its especially pronounced character (Plate 23)—the cone-like Boletus, or, more properly, Strobilomyces. It is of a brownish gray color, its shaggy surface more or less studded with deep brown or black woolly points, each at the centre of a scale-like segment. The tubes beneath are covered by the veil in the younger specimens, but this at length breaks, leaving ragged fragments hanging from the rim of the pileus. The pore surface thus exposed is at first a grayish white, ultimately becoming brown. The substance of the fungus turns red when broken or cut.
This very striking mushroom is found in woods, especially under evergreens. It frequently attains a diameter of four inches. Its spores are a deep brown, and a specimen selected at the stage when the under surface isflatwill yield a most beautiful spore print if laid upon white paper and protected from the atmosphere, as described in a later chapter.
PLATE XXIIITHE CONE-LIKE BOLETUS
Strobilomyces strobilaceus
Pileus:From two to four inches in diameter, covered with a soft gray wool drawn into regular cone-like points tipped with dark brown.Flesh grayish white, turning red when bruised.Pore surface:Grayish white in young specimen, and then usually covered with the veil; dark brown or almost black at maturity.Plate 38shows a spore-print of this species.Spores:Very dark brown.Taste:Negatively pleasant.Odor:Sweet and mild.Habitat:Woods; singly or in small clusters.
Pileus:From two to four inches in diameter, covered with a soft gray wool drawn into regular cone-like points tipped with dark brown.
Flesh grayish white, turning red when bruised.
Pore surface:Grayish white in young specimen, and then usually covered with the veil; dark brown or almost black at maturity.Plate 38shows a spore-print of this species.
Spores:Very dark brown.
Taste:Negatively pleasant.
Odor:Sweet and mild.
Habitat:Woods; singly or in small clusters.
PLATE XXIII
Strobilomyces Strobilaceus.
Black spore-prints
A reproduction of one of these prints is shown inPlate 38, the white reticulation representing the contact of the tube orifices with the paper, each tube depositing its dot composed of spores, the depth of color increasing in proportion to the time involved in the deposit. A single mushroom will yield a half-dozen or more prints. This fungus dries readily, and may be kept indefinitely.
Boletus felleus—B. alveolatus
Maligned species
A daring pioneer mycophagist
InPlate 24are shown two examples of the Boleti which have commonly been accounted poisonous—B. felleusandB. alveolatus—and, in the absence of absolutely satisfactory assurance to the contrary, it is safer from our present point of view to consider them still as suspicious and to give them a wide berth. There can be no doubt but that the popular condemnation of the Boleti has been altogether too sweeping. The gradual accession of many questionable species to the edible list of Messrs. McIlvaine and Palmer and other daring mycophagists is a sufficient attestation of this fact. Thussubtomentosusandcyanescens, already described, always heretofore branded as reprobates, are now redeemed from obloquy, and even the universal ill-repute of theB. satanas, with its pale pileus and blood-red pores,has not frightened the indefatigable Captain McIlvaine from a personal challenge and encounter with this lurid specimen, with the result that the formidable "Satanas" has proved anything but deserving of its name—not half so lurid as it has been painted; indeed, it has been even pronounced "the best of them all." Of course there's no telling to what extent the considerations of contrast, through surprise and the consequent demoralization on the contingents of the personal equation, may have influenced the captain's discrimination, but it certainly would appear, to put it negatively, that even the ill-favored world-renownedB. satanashas apparently been freed from aspersion as an enemy of mankind.
But it is well for the amateur to avoid these notorious species absolutely until their edibility becomes universally accepted by the "professionals."
The bitter Boletus
TheBoletus felleus(Plate 24, fig. 1) is a very common species. The pinkish substance of this Boletus is so extremely bitter when raw as to make it sufficiently repellent as food. The color of its smooth cap varies from creamy yellow to reddish brown. Substance white in young specimens, flesh color or pinkish in older individuals. Tube surface white at first, becoming pinkish. Opening of tubes, angled. Stem usually more or less netted with raised lines towards cap. Spores pinkish or "flesh colored." Common in rich soil in woods.
PLATE XXIVSUSPICIOUS BOLETI
Alveolate Boletus—Boletus alveolatus
Pileus:Smooth, polished; bright, deep crimson or maroon, occasionally mottled or marbled with yellowish; three to six inches in diameter.Flesh:Firm and solid in substance; pale greenish or yellowish white, changing blue in fracture or where bruised.Tubes:Tube-surface reaching the stem proper; undulate with uneven hollows; maroon, the tubes in section being yellow beyond their dark red mouths.Spores:Yellowish brown.Stem:Usually disproportionately long, covered with depressions or oblong pitted indentations, with intermediate coarse network of raised ridges; red and yellow.Habitat:Woods; quite common.
Pileus:Smooth, polished; bright, deep crimson or maroon, occasionally mottled or marbled with yellowish; three to six inches in diameter.
Flesh:Firm and solid in substance; pale greenish or yellowish white, changing blue in fracture or where bruised.
Tubes:Tube-surface reaching the stem proper; undulate with uneven hollows; maroon, the tubes in section being yellow beyond their dark red mouths.
Spores:Yellowish brown.
Stem:Usually disproportionately long, covered with depressions or oblong pitted indentations, with intermediate coarse network of raised ridges; red and yellow.
Habitat:Woods; quite common.
Bitter Boletus—Boletus felleus
Pileus:At first firm in substance, becoming soft and cushion-like; smooth, without polish, varying in color from pale ochre to yellowish or reddish brown; diameter three to nine inches.Flesh:White on immediate section, generally changing to slight pinkish or flesh color in fracture.Tubes:Tube-surface rounded upward as it reaches stem; white at first, becoming dull pinkish with age, or upon being bruised.Spores:Flesh colored or dull pink.Stem:Usually quite stout, nearly as smooth as the cap, and somewhat lighter in color; more or less ridged with coarse reticulations, occasionally covered with them to its thickened base.Taste:Bitter.Habitat:Rich woods and copses, often about decaying trunks.
Pileus:At first firm in substance, becoming soft and cushion-like; smooth, without polish, varying in color from pale ochre to yellowish or reddish brown; diameter three to nine inches.
Flesh:White on immediate section, generally changing to slight pinkish or flesh color in fracture.
Tubes:Tube-surface rounded upward as it reaches stem; white at first, becoming dull pinkish with age, or upon being bruised.
Spores:Flesh colored or dull pink.
Stem:Usually quite stout, nearly as smooth as the cap, and somewhat lighter in color; more or less ridged with coarse reticulations, occasionally covered with them to its thickened base.
Taste:Bitter.
Habitat:Rich woods and copses, often about decaying trunks.
PLATE XXIV
Suspicious Boleti.
BOLETUS ALVEOLATUS. B. FELLEUS.
The crimson Boletus
Boletus alveolatus.—Pileus smooth and polished, usually rich crimson or maroon, sometimes varied with paler yellowish tints. Substance very solid, changing to blue on fracture or bruise. Tube surface deep dull crimson or maroon, this color not extending the full length of the pores, which are yellow a short distance above their mouths. The stem is quite stout and tall for the size of the cap as compared with other Boleti. It is mottled in yellow and bright red or crimson, and conspicuously meshed with a network of firm ridges. The spores are yellowish brown. A conspicuous and easily identified species.
Fistulina hepatica
Botanical characters
Our next member of the Polyporus order, or tube-bearing fungi, is a unique member of the fungus tribe, and cannot be mistaken for any other species. An example of this species is shown inPlate 25, thebeefsteakmushroom—Fistulina hepatica. The specimen from which my drawing was made was found growing at the foot of a chestnut-tree, and was about nine inches across by about two in greatest thickness. Its upper surface was dark meaty red or liver colored, somewhat wet, or viscid and clammy, and its taste slightly acid. The under tube surface was yellowish white, and, as the section will show, was proportionately thin—the pores being about one-eighth of an inch in length. The solid red substance much resembled meat, and in sections was streaked with darker lines of red, as indicated in plate, somewhat suggesting a section of beet-root.