Plate 73.—Merulius lacrymans.Figure 189.—Upper plant in conduit pipe leading from wash room, Gymnasium C. U., Autumn, 1899.Figure 190.—Lower plant from under surface decaying hemlock spruce log in woods near Freeville, N. Y., October, 1899. Margin of plants white, fruiting surface a network of irregular folds, golden brown, or brown. Copyright.
Plate 73.—Merulius lacrymans.Figure 189.—Upper plant in conduit pipe leading from wash room, Gymnasium C. U., Autumn, 1899.Figure 190.—Lower plant from under surface decaying hemlock spruce log in woods near Freeville, N. Y., October, 1899. Margin of plants white, fruiting surface a network of irregular folds, golden brown, or brown. Copyright.
Plate 74.—Merulius tremellosus.Figure 191.—Natural size.Figure 192.—Enlarged to show character of fruiting surface. Fruiting surface yellowish; margin and upper surface in shelving forms, white, hairy. Copyright.
Plate 75, Figure 193.—Phlebia merismoides. On rotting log, woods near Ithaca, November 23, 1898 (No. 2634 C. U. herbarium). Various shades of orange, yellow or yellow brown when old. Copyright.
Plate 75, Figure 193.—Phlebia merismoides. On rotting log, woods near Ithaca, November 23, 1898 (No. 2634 C. U. herbarium). Various shades of orange, yellow or yellow brown when old. Copyright.
Plate 76, Figure 194.—Phlebia merismoides. Portion of a plant 2-1/2 times natural size, to show interrupted folds of fruiting surface. For colors see Fig.193. Copyright.
Plate 76, Figure 194.—Phlebia merismoides. Portion of a plant 2-1/2 times natural size, to show interrupted folds of fruiting surface. For colors see Fig.193. Copyright.
The plants belonging to this family vary greatly in size, form, and consistency. Some of them are very large, some quite small, some are fleshy in consistency, some are woody, corky; some membranaceous; and if we include plants formerly classed here, some are gelatinous, though there is a tendency in recent years on the part of some to place the gelatinous ones among the trembling fungi. The special character which marks the members of this family is the peculiarity of the fruiting surface, just as a number of the other families are distinguished by some peculiarity of the fruiting surface. In theHydnaceæit covers the surface of numerous processes in the form of spines, teeth, warts, coarse granules, or folds which are interrupted at short intervals. These spines or teeth always are directed toward the earth when the plant is in the position in which it grew. In this way the members of the family can be distinguished from certain members of the club fungi belonging to the familyClavariaceæ, for in the latter the branches or free parts of the plant are erect.
In form theHydnaceæare shelving, growing on trees; or growing on the ground they often have a central or eccentric stem, and a more or less circular cap; some of them are rounded masses, growing from trees, with very long spines extending downward; others have ascending branches from which the spines depend; and still others form thin sheets which are spread over the surface of logs and sticks, the spines hanging down from the surface, or roughened with granules or warts, or interrupted folds (seePhlebia, Figs.193,194). In one genus there is no fruit body, but the spines themselves extend downward from the rotten wood, the genusMucronella. This is only distinguished, so far as its family position is concerned, from such a species asClavaria mucidaby the fact that the plant grows downward from the wood, while inC. mucidait grows erect.
The only species of theHydnaceædescribed here are in the genusHydnum. In this genus the fruiting surface is on spine, or awl-shaped processes, which are either simple or in some cases the tips are more or less branched. The plants grow on the ground or onwood. The species vary greatly in form. Some are provided with a more or less regular cap and a stem, while others are shelving or bracket shaped, and still others are spread out over the surface of the wood (resupinate).
Figure 195.—Hydnum coralloides. Entirely white (natural size). Copyright.
Figure 195.—Hydnum coralloides. Entirely white (natural size). Copyright.
Hydnum coralloidesScop.Edible.—Among the very beautiful species of the genusHydnumis the coral one,Hydnum coralloides. It grows in woods forming large, beautiful, pure white tufts on rotten logs, branches, etc. The appearance of one of these tufts is shown in Fig. 195. There is a common stem which arises from the wood, and this branches successively into long, ascending, graceful shoots. The spines are scattered over the entire under side of these branches and hang down for 3–6 mm. They are not clustered at the ends of the branches, as in the bear's head hydnum, and the species can be easily distinguished by giving attention to the form of the branching and the distribution of the spines on the under side of the branches. Figure195represents a plant collected at Ithaca, and it is naturalsize. They grow, however, much larger than this specimen. The species is widely distributed, and not uncommon. It is excellent for food.
Plate 77, Figure 196.—Hydnum caput-ursi. Entirely white (natural size). Copyright.
Plate 77, Figure 196.—Hydnum caput-ursi. Entirely white (natural size). Copyright.
Hydnum caput-ursiFr.Edible.—This plant is also a beautiful one. It is more common than the coral hydnum so far as my observation goes. It is known by the popular name of "bear's head hydnum" in allusion to the groups of spines at the ends of the branches. It occurs in woods with a similar habit of growing on trunks, branches, etc. This plant also arises from the wood with a single stout stem, which then branches successively, the ends of the branches having groups of long pendant spines appearing like numerous heads. Sometimes the spines on the top of the group are twisted or curled in a peculiar way. Large tufts are sometimes formed, varying from 12–20 or more centimeters in diameter. Figure196is from a plant collected at Ithaca.
Figure 197.—Hydnum erinaceus. Entirely white (natural size, often larger).
Figure 197.—Hydnum erinaceus. Entirely white (natural size, often larger).
Hydnum caput-medusæBull.Edible.—The medusa's head hydnum is a rarer species than either of the above in this country. It forms a large, tubercular mass which does not branch like the coral hydnum or the bear's head, but more like the Satyr's beard hydnum, though the character of the spines will easily separate it from the latter. The spines cover a large part of this large tubercle, and hang downward. The plant is known by the additional character, that, on the upper part of the tubercle, the spines are twisted and interwoven in a peculiar fashion.
Hydnum erinaceusBull.Edible.—This plant is sometimes called "Satyr's beard." It grows on dead trunks in the woods or groves, and is often found growing from wounds in living trees. It forms a large, tubercular mass which does not branch. The spines are very long and straight and hang downward in straight parallel lines from the sides of the mass. The spines are from 1–2 cm. or more long. Figure197represents one of the plants, showing the long spines.
Hydnum repandumL.Edible.—This plant is not uncommon, and it is widely distributed. It grows usually in woods, on the ground. It varies greatly in size, from very small specimens, 1–2 cm. high to others 10–12 cm. high. The cap is 2–18 cm. broad, and the stem 6–12 mm. in thickness.
Plate 78, Figure 198.—Hydnum repandum. Cap whitish or yellowish, or pale yellowish brown; spines whitish or yellowish (natural size, often smaller). Copyright.
Plate 78, Figure 198.—Hydnum repandum. Cap whitish or yellowish, or pale yellowish brown; spines whitish or yellowish (natural size, often smaller). Copyright.
It is entirely white or the cap varies to buff, dull yellow reddish or dull brown. It is very brittle, and must be handled with the utmost care if one wishes to preserve the specimen intact. The pileus is more or less irregular, the stem being generally eccentric, so that the pileus is produced more on one side than on the other, sometimes entirely lateral at the end of the stem. The margin is more or less wavy or repand. The spines are white, straight, and very brittle. The stem is even or clavate. Figure198is from plants collected at Ithaca during August, 1899, and represents one of the large specimens of the species. In one plant the pileus is entirely lateral on the end of the long clavate stem, and is somewhat reniform, the stem being attached at the sinus. In the other plant the stem is attached near the center. This species is considered one of the best mushrooms for the table.
Plate 79, Figure 199.—Hydnum putidum. Caps whitish then buff, then brownish or nearly black in older parts, edge white (natural size). Copyright.
Plate 79, Figure 199.—Hydnum putidum. Caps whitish then buff, then brownish or nearly black in older parts, edge white (natural size). Copyright.
Hydnum imbricatumL.Edible.—This is a very variable species both in size and in the surface characters of the pileus. It occurs in woods, groves, or in open places under trees. The plants are 3–7 cm. high, and the pileus varies from 5–15 cm. broad, the stem from .5–2.5 cm. in thickness. The pileus is convex and nearly expanded, fleshy, thinner at the margin, regular or very irregular. The color is grayish in the younger and smaller plants to umber or quite dark in thelarger and older ones. The surface is cracked and torn into triangular scales, showing the whitish color of the flesh between the scales. The scales are small in the younger plants and larger in the older ones. Figure200is from plants collected at Ithaca, and the pileus in these specimens is irregular. The species is edible, but bitter to the taste.
Figure 200.—Hydnum imbricatum. Caps brownish, spines whitish (natural size, often larger).
Figure 200.—Hydnum imbricatum. Caps brownish, spines whitish (natural size, often larger).
Hydnum putidumAtkinson.—This plant grows on the ground in woods, and was collected in the Blue Ridge mountains at Blowing Rock, N. C., at an elevation of about 4000 feet. It is remarkable for its peculiar odor, resembling, when fresh, that of an Ethiopian; for its tough, zonate pileus with a prominent white edge, and the stout irregular stem, resembling the stem ofHydnum velutinum. The plants are 8–12 cm. high, the cap 8–12 cm. broad, and the stem 2–4 cm. in thickness. The plants grow singly, or sometimes a few close together, and then two or more may be conjoined.
Thepileusis first umbilicate or depressed, becoming depressed or infundibuliform, irregular, eccentric, the margin repand, and sometimes lobed, and lobes appearing at times on the upper surface of the cap. The surface is first tomentose or pubescent, becoming smooth, with prominent concentric zones probably marked off by periodical growth; the color is first white, so that the edge is white, becoming cream color to buff, and in age dull brown and sometimes blackish brown in the center of the old plants. The pubescence disappears from the old portions of the cap, so that it is smooth. The pubescence or tomentum is more prominent on the intermediate zones. The margin is rather thick, somewhat acute or blunt, the upper portionof the flesh is spongy and the middle portion tough and coriaceous, and darker in color. The pileus is somewhat pliant when moist or wet, and firm when dry, the dark inner stratum hard.
Thespinesare first white or cream color, in age changing through salmon color, or directly into grayish or grayish brown. The spines when mature are long, slender, crowded, and decurrent on the upper part of the stem. Thesporesare white, globose, echinulate, 3–4 µ. Thestemis stout and irregular, very closely resembling the stem ofHydnum velutinum, with a thick, spongy, outer layer and a central hard core.
The odor, which resembles that of a perspiring darkey, before the plant is dry, disappears after drying, and then the plant has the same agreeable odor presented by several different species of Hydnum. The odor suggestsH. graveolens, but the characters of the stem and surface of the pileus separate it from that species, while the tough and pliant character of the cap separates it fromH. fragile. Figure199is from plants (No. 4334, C. U. herbarium) collected at Blowing Rock, N. C., during September, 1899.
This family is a very characteristic one, and very interesting from the large number of beautiful species in one genus, the genusClavaria. The plants all are more or less erect, or at least stand out from the substratum, that is, the substance on which they are growing. The fruiting surface covers the entire upper part of the plant, all but the bases of the stems. Some of the branched species of theThelephoraceæresemble the branched species of theClavariaceæ, but in the former there is a more or less well defined upper portion on the tips of the branches which is flat, or truncate, and sterile, that is, lacks the fruiting surface. Some of the species are simple, elongate and clavate bodies. Some stand singly, others are clustered, or others are joined by their bases, and others still are very much branched. All of the species are said to be edible, that is, they are not poisonous. A few are rather tough, but they are mostly the small species which would not be thought of for food. The spores are borne on club-shaped basidia, as in the common mushrooms.
Plate 80, Figure 201.—Clavaria formosa. Yellowish, red tipped when young, red disappearing in age (natural size, sometimes twice this size). Copyright.
Plate 80, Figure 201.—Clavaria formosa. Yellowish, red tipped when young, red disappearing in age (natural size, sometimes twice this size). Copyright.
The genusClavariais one of the most common ones in the family, and is one of the most attractive from the variety and beauty of several of the species. All of the plants are more or less erect, and at least stand out from the substratum on which they grow. They are either long and simple and more or less club-shaped, as the name implies, or they are branched, some but a few times, while others are very profusely branched. The plants vary in color, some are white, some yellow, some red, and some are red-tipped, while others are brownish in color.
Figure 202.—Clavaria botrytes. Branches red tipped (natural size).
Figure 202.—Clavaria botrytes. Branches red tipped (natural size).
Clavaria formosaPers.Edible.—This is one of the handsomest of the genus. It is found in different parts of the world, and has been collected in New England and in the Carolinas in this country. It is usually from 15–20 cm. high, and because of the great number of branches is often broader in extent. There is a stout stem from 2–4 cm. in diameter, deep in the ground. This branches into a few stout trunks, which then rapidly branch into slender and longer branches,terminating into numerous tips. The entire plant is very brittle, and great care is necessary to prevent its breaking, both before drying and afterward. When the plant is young and is just pushing out of the ground, the branches, especially the tips, are bright colored, red, pink, or orange, the color usually brighter when young in the younger plants. As the plant becomes older the color fades out, until at maturity the pink or red color has in many cases disappeared, and then the entire plant is of a light yellowish, or of a cream buff color. The spores are in mass light yellow, and the spores on the surface of the plant probably give the color to the plant at this stage. The spores are long, oval or oblong, 10–15 × 2.5–3 µ, and are minutely spiny. Figure201is from a plant (No. 4343, C. U. herbarium) collected at Blowing Rock, N. C., in September, 1899. The plant is very common in the mountain woods of North Carolina.
Figure 203.—Clavaria pistillaris. Dull whitish, tan or reddish (natural size).
Figure 203.—Clavaria pistillaris. Dull whitish, tan or reddish (natural size).
Specimens of this Clavaria were several times prepared for table use during my stay in the mountains, but the flavor was not an agreeable one, possibly due to the fact that it needs some special preparation and seasoning.
Clavaria botrytesPers.Edible.—This plant is much smaller thanC. formosa, but has much the same general habit and color, especially whenC. formosais young. The plant has a stout stem which soondissolves into numerous branches, which are red tipped. The spores are white, and in this way it may be distinguished fromC. formosa, or fromClavaria aurea(Schaeff.), which has yellow or ochre spores, and which has also much the same habit asC. botrytes, and is nearer in size.
Figure 204.—Clavaria mucida. White (natural size). Copyright.
Figure 204.—Clavaria mucida. White (natural size). Copyright.
Clavaria pistillarisLinn.Edible.—This plant is a characteristic one because of its usually large size and simple form. It is merely a club-shaped body, growing from the ground. It has a wide range, both in Europe and North America, but does not seem to be common, though I have found it more common in the mountain woods of North Carolina than in New York. The plant is 5–20 cm. high, and 1–3 cm. thick at the upper end. It is smooth, though often irregularly grooved and furrowed, due probably to unequal tensions in growth. The apex in typical specimens is rounded and blunt. It is dull white or tan color or rufescent. The flesh is white, and very spongy, especially in age, when it is apt to be irregularly fistulose. Figure203is from plants collected at Blowing Rock, N. C., during September 1899.
There is what seems to be an abnormal form of this species figured by Schaeffer, Table 290, which Fries separated as a distinct species and placed in the genusCraterellus, one of theThelephoraceæ, and called by himCraterellus pistillaris. This plant has been found at Ithaca, and the only difference between this and theClavaria pistillarisL., seems to be in the fact that inCraterellus pistillaristhe end is truncate or in some specimens more or less concave. The spores seem to be the same, and the color and general habit of the two plants are the same. It is probably only a form ofClavaria pistillaris.
Clavaria mucidaPers.—This is one of the smallest species of the genusClavaria. It grows on rotten wood, and appears throughoutthe year. It is usually simple and clavate, but sometimes branched. The plant is white, or yellowish, or sometimes rose color, and measures from 0.5 to 2 cm. in height, though I have usually found it from 0.5–1 cm. in height. It is soft and watery. Figure204is from plants (No. 4998, C. U. herbarium) collected at Ithaca in October, 1899.
These fungi are called the trembling fungi because of their gelatinous consistency. The colors vary from white, yellow, orange, reddish, brownish, etc., and the form is various, often very irregular, leaf-like, or strongly folded and uneven. They are when fresh usually very soft, clammy to the touch, and yielding like a mass of gelatine. They usually grow on wood, but some species grow on the ground, and some are parasitic. The fruit surface usually covers the entire outer surface of the plant, but in some it is confined to one side of the plant. The basidia are peculiar to the order, are deeply seated in the substance of the plant, rounded or globose, and divided into four cells in a cruciate manner. From each one of these cells of the basidium a long, slender process (sterigma) grows out to the surface of the plant and bears the spore. A few species only are treated of here.
In this genus the plants are gelatinous or cartilaginous. The form of the plant is usually very much contorted, fold-like or leaf-like, and very much branched. The fruiting surface extends over the entire upper surface of the plant.
Figure 205.—Tremella mycetophila, on Collybia dryophila (natural size).
Figure 205.—Tremella mycetophila, on Collybia dryophila (natural size).
Tremella lutescensPers.—This plant is entirely yellow, and occurs on branches. It is 2–5 cm. in diameter, and is strongly folded, somewhat like the folds of a brain (gyrose). It is very soft and inclined to be watery and fluid, and is of a bright yellow color, spread out on the surface of rotten wood. It is of world-wide distribution, and appears from mid-summer to late autumn.
Tremella mycetophilaPk.—This plant is interesting from the fact that it is parasitic on a mushroom,Collybia dryophila. It grows on the stem or on the top of the cap of theCollybia, and it is white, or yellowish, very much contorted (gyrose-plicate), nearly rounded, and 8–16 mm. in diameter. Figure205represents thisTremellagrowing on theCollybia dryophila, from plants collected at Freeville woods near Ithaca.
Figure 206.—Tremella frondosa. Pinkish yellow or pinkish vinaceous (natural size). Copyright.
Figure 206.—Tremella frondosa. Pinkish yellow or pinkish vinaceous (natural size). Copyright.
Tremella frondosaFr.—This is said to be the largest species of the genus. It grows on rotten wood. It occurs in Europe, has been collected in New York State, and the Fig.206is from a plant (No. 4339, C. U. herbarium) collected at Blowing Rock, N. C., in September, 1899. The plant figured here was 10 cm. long and about 8 cm. high. It is very much twisted and contorted, leaf-like, and the middle and base all united. It is of apinkish yellow color, one plant being vinaceous pink and another cream buff in color. When young the leaf-like lobes do not show well, but as it expands they become very prominent.
Several other species of Tremella are probably more common than the ones illustrated here. One of the commonest of theTremellineæprobably is theExidia glandulosa, which in dry weather appears as a black incrustation on dead limbs, but during rains it swells up into a large, black, very soft, gelatinous mass. It is commonly found on fallen limbs of oak, and occurs from autumn until late spring. It is sometimes called "witch's butter."
Figure 207.—Tremella fuciformis. Entirely white (natural size). Copyright.
Figure 207.—Tremella fuciformis. Entirely white (natural size). Copyright.
Tremella fuciformisBerk.—This is a very beautiful white tremella growing in woods on leaf mold close to the ground. It forms a large white tubercular mass resting on the ground, from the upper surface of which numerous stout, short, white processes arise which branch a few times in a dichotomous manner. The masses are 10–15 cm. in diameter, and nearly or quite as high. The flesh is very soft, and the parts are more or less hollow. The basidia are like those of the genus, globose, sunk in the substance of the plant, and terminate with four long, slender, sterigmata which rise to the surface and bear the spores. The spores are white, nearly ovoid, but inequilateral and somewhat reniform, continuous, 7–9 × 5–6 µ.
Figure207is from a plant collected in a woods near Ithaca, in August, 1897.
The genusGyrocephalusdiffers from the otherTremellineæin having the fruiting surface on the lower side of the fruit body, while the upper side is sterile.
Figure 208.—Gyrocephalus rufus. Reddish or reddish yellow (natural size). Copyright.
Figure 208.—Gyrocephalus rufus. Reddish or reddish yellow (natural size). Copyright.
Gyrocephalus rufus(Jacq.) Bref.—This species is sometimes very abundant. It grows on the ground, generally from buried wood, or from dead roots. It is erect, stout at the base, and the upper end flattened and thinner. It is more or less spatulate, the upper side somewhat concave, and the lower somewhat convex. In some plants the pileus is more regular and there is then a tendency to the funnel form. It is reddish, or reddish yellow in color, smooth, clammy, watery, and quite gelatinous. When dry it is very hard. Figure208 represents the form of the plant well, from plants collected at Ithaca. The plant is quite common in the damp glens and woods at Ithaca during the autumn.
Many of the species of the Thelephoraceæ to which the following two species belong are too tough for food. A large number of these grow on wood. They are known by their hard or membranaceous character and by the fruiting surface (under surface when in the position in which they grew) being smooth, or only slightly uneven, or cracked.
Craterellus cantharellus(Schw.) Fr., is an edible species. In general appearance it resembles theCantharellus cibarius. The color is the same, and the general shape, except that the former is perhaps more irregular in form. It may, however, be in most cases easily distinguished fromC. cibariusby the absence of folds on the under or fruiting surface, since the fruiting surface is smooth, especially when the plants are young or middle age. However, when the plants get quite large and old, in some cases the fruiting surface becomes very uneven from numerous folds and wrinkles, which, however, are more irregular than the folds ofC. cibarius.
Craterellus cornucopioides(L.) Pers., is another edible species. It grows on the ground in woods. It is of a dusky or dark smoky color, and is deeply funnel-shaped, resembling a "horn of plenty," though usually straight. The fruiting surface is somewhat uneven.
The genusStereumis a very common one on branches, etc., either entirely spread out on the wood, or with the margin or a large part of the pileus free.Hymenochæteis likeStereum, but has numerous small black spines in the fruiting surface, giving it a velvety appearance.Corticiumis very thin and spread over the wood in patches.
Plate 81, Figure 209.—Lycoperdon cyathiforme (natural size).
Plate 81, Figure 209.—Lycoperdon cyathiforme (natural size).
This is not the place for a discussion of the different genera of the puff-balls, etc., but it might be well to say that in recent years the old genusLycoperdonhas been divided into several genera. The giantpuff-ball, and theL. cyathiforme, where the wall or peridium ruptures irregularly, have been placed in a genus calledCalvatia; certain other species which are nearly globose, and in which the wall is of a papery texture at maturity, are placed in the genusBovista. There is one genus belonging to the same family as the lycoperdons, the species of which are very interesting on account of the peculiar way in which the wall is ruptured. This is the genusGeaster, that is, "earth star." The wall, or peridium, is quite thick in the members of this genus, and when it matures it separates into several layers which need not all be discussed here. A thick outer portion which separates from a thinner inner portion further splits radially into several star-like divisions, which spread outward and give to the plant the form of a star. Since the plants lie on the earth the name earth star was applied to them. This opens out in dry weather, even curving around under the plant, so that the plant is raised above the ground. Then in wet weather it closes up again. The inner portion of the wall opens at the apex in various ways, in the different species, so that the spores may escape. A closely related genus has several small perforations like a pepper box in the upper surface of the inner wall,Myriostoma.
To this genus belong most of the "puff-balls," as they are commonly called, or, as they are denominated in the South, "Devil's snuff box." All, or a large portion, of the interior of the plant at maturity breaks down into a powdery substance, which with the numerous spores is very light, and when the plant is squeezed or pressed, clouds of this dust burst out at the opening through the wall. The wall of the plant is termed theperidium. In this genus the wall is quite thin, and at maturity opens differently in different species. In several species it opens irregularly, the entire wall becoming very brittle and cracking up into bits, as in the giant puff-ball. In theremaining species it opens by a distinct perforation at the apex, and the remainder of the wall is more or less pliant and membranous. All of the puff-balls are said to be edible, at least are harmless, if eaten when the flesh is white. They should not be eaten when the flesh is dark, or is changing from the white color.
Lycoperdon giganteumBatsch.Edible.—This, the giant puff-ball, is the largest species of the genus. Sometimes it reaches immense proportions, two to three or even four feet, but these large sizes are rare. It is usually 20 to 40 cm. (8–16 in.) in diameter. It grows on the ground in grassy places during late summer and in the autumn. It is a large rounded mass, resting on the ground, and near or at the center of the under side, it is attached to the cords of mycelium in the ground. It is white in color until it is ripe, that is, when the spores are mature, and it should be gathered for food before it is thus ripe. When it is maturing it becomes yellowish, then dusky or smoky in color. The flesh, which is white when young, changes to greenish yellow and finally brownish, with usually an olivaceous tinge, as the spores ripen.
The plant is so large that it may be sliced, and should be sliced before broiling. A single specimen often forms enough for a meal for a large family, and some of the larger ones would serve for several meals.
Lycoperdon cyathiformeBosc.Edible.—This is called the beaker-shaped puff-ball because the base of the plant, after the spores have all been scattered, resembles to some extent a beaker, or a broad cup with a stout, stem-like base. These old sterile bases of the plant are often found in the fields long after the spores have disappeared. The plants are somewhat pear-shaped, rounded above, and tapering below to the stout base. They are 7–15 cm. in diameter, and white when young. At maturity the spore mass is purplish, and by this color as well as by the sterile base the plant is easily recognized. Of course these characters cannot be recognized in the young and growing plant at the time it is wanted for food, but the white color of the interior of the plant would be a sufficient guarantee that it was edible, granted of course that it was a member of the puff-ball family. Sometimes, long before the spores mature, the outer portion of the plant changes from white to pinkish, or brownish colors. At maturity the wall, or peridium, breaks into brittle fragments, which disappear and the purplish mass of the spores is exposed. The plant grows in grassy places or even in cultivated fields.
Lycoperdon gemmatumBatsch.Edible.—This puff-ball is widely distributed throughout the world and is very common. It grows in thewoods, or in open places on the ground, usually. It is known from its characteristic top shape, the more or less erect scales on the upper surface intermingled with smaller ones, the larger ones falling away and leaving circular scars over the surface, which gives it a reticulate appearance. The plants are white, becoming dark gray or grayish brown when mature. They vary in size from 3–7 cm. high to 2–5 cm. broad. They are more or less top-shaped, and the stem, which is stout, is sometimes longer than the rounded portion, which is the fruiting part. The outer part of the wall (outer peridium) when quite young separates into warts or scales of varying size, large ones arranged quite regularly with smaller ones between. These warts are well shown in the two plants at the left in Fig.210, and the third plant from the left shows the reticulations formed of numerous scars on the inner peridium where the larger scales have fallen away.
Figure 210.—Lycoperdon gemmatum. Entirely white except when old (natural size). Copyright.
Figure 210.—Lycoperdon gemmatum. Entirely white except when old (natural size). Copyright.
The plant at the extreme right is mature, and the inner peridium has ruptured at the apex to permit the escape of the spores. The spore mass, together with brownish threads which are intermingled, are greenish yellow with an olive tinge, then they become pale brown. The spores are rounded, 3.5–4.5 µ in diameter, smooth or minutely warted.
Another small puff-ball everywhere common in woods is theLycoperdon pyriforme, so called because of its pear shape. It grows on very rotten wood or on decaying logs in woods or groves, or in open places where there is rotting wood. It is somewhat smaller than the gem-bearing lycoperdon, is almost sessile, sometimes many crowded very close together, and especially is it characterized by prominent root-like white strands of mycelium which are attached to the basewhere the plant enters the rotten wood. While these small species of puff-balls are not injurious to eat, they do not seem to possess an agreeable flavor. There are quite a number of species in this country which cannot be enumerated here.
Related to the puff-balls, and properly classed with them, are the species ofScleroderma. This name is given to the genus because of the hard peridium, the wall being much firmer and harder than inLycoperdon. There are two species which are not uncommon,Scleroderma vulgareandS. verrucosum. They grow on the ground or on very rotten wood, and are sessile, often showing the root-like white strands attached to their base. They vary in size from 2–6 cm. and the outer wall is cracked into numerous coarse areas, or warts, giving the plant a verrucose appearance, from which one of the species gets its specific name.
Calostoma cinnabarinumDesv.—This is a remarkably beautiful plant with a general distribution in the Eastern United States. It has often been referred to in this country under the genus nameMitremyces, and sometimes has been confused with a rarer and different species,Calostoma lutescens(Schw.) Burnap. It grows in damp woods, usually along the banks of streams and along mountain roads. It is remarkable for the brilliant vermilion color of the inner surface of the outer layer of the wall (exoperidium), which is exposed by splitting into radial strips that curl and twist themselves off, and by the vermilion color of the edges of the teeth at the apex of the inner wall (endoperidium). The plant is 2–8 cm. high, and 1–2 cm. in diameter. When mature the base or stem, which is formed of reticulated and anastomosing cords, elongates and lifts the rounded or oval fruiting portion to some distance above the surface of the ground, when the gelatinous volva ruptures and falls to the ground or partly clings to the stem, exposing the peridium, the outer portion of which then splits in the manner described.
When the plant is first seen above the ground it appears as a globose or rounded body, and in wet weather has a very thick gelatinous layer surrounding it. This is the volva and is formed by the gelatinization of the outer layer of threads which compose it. This gelatinous layer is thick and also viscid, and when the plants are placed on paper to dry, it glues them firmly to the sheet. When the outer layer of the peridium splits, it does so by splitting from the base toward the apex, or from the apex toward the base. Of the large number of specimens which I have seen at Blowing Rock, N. C., the split more often begins at the apex, or at least, when the slit is complete, the strips usually stand out loosely in a radiate manner, thetips being free. At this stage the plant is a very beautiful object with the crown of vermilion strips radiating outward from the base of the fruit body at the top of the stem, and the inner peridium resting in the center and terminated by the four to seven teeth with vermilion edges. At this time also the light yellow spore mass is oozing out from between the teeth. The spores are oblong to elliptical, marked with very fine points, and measure 15–18 × 8–10 µ.
Plate 82, Figure 211.—Calostoma cinnabarinum. See text for colors (natural size).
Plate 82, Figure 211.—Calostoma cinnabarinum. See text for colors (natural size).
Figure211is from plants collected at Blowing Rock, N. C., in September, 1899. TheMytremyces lutescensreported in my list of "Some Fungi of Blowing Rock, N. C.," in Jour. Elisha Mitchell Sci. Soc. 9: 95–107, 1892, is thisCalostoma cinnabarinum.
Most of the stink-horn fungi are characterized by a very offensive odor. Some of them at maturity are in shape not unlike that of a horn, and the vulgar name is applied because of this form and the odor. The plants grow in the ground, or in decaying organic matter lying on the ground. The spawn or mycelium is in the form of rope-like strands which are usually much branched and matted together. From these cords the fruit form arises. During its period of growth and up to the maturity of the spores, the fruit body is oval, that is, egg form, and because of this form and the quite large size of these bodies they are often called "eggs." The outer portion of the egg forms the volva. It is always thick, and has an outer thin coat or membrane, and an inner membrane, while between the two is a thick layer of gelatinous substance, so that the wall of the volva is often 3–6 mm. in thickness, and is very soft. The outline of the volva can be seen in Fig.215, which shows sections of three eggs in different stages. Inside of the volva is the short stem (receptacle) which is in the middle portion, and covering the upper portion and sides of this short stem is the pileus; the fruit-bearing portion, which is divided into small chambers, lies on the outside of the pileus. In the figure there can be seen cross lines extending through this part from the pileus to the wall of the volva. These represent ridges or crests which anastomose over the pileus, forming reticulations. The stem or receptacle is hollow through the center, and this hollow opensout at the end so that there is a rounded perforation through the upper portion of the pileus.
The spores are borne on club-shaped basidia within the chambers of the fruit-bearing portion (gleba), and at maturity of the spores the stem or receptacle begins to elongate. This pushes the gleba and the upper part of the receptacle through the apex of the volva, leaving this as a cup-shaped body at the base, much as in certain species ofAmanita, while the gleba is borne aloft on the much elongated stem. During this elongation of the receptacle a large part of the substance of the gleba dissolves into a thick liquid containing the spores. This runs off and is washed off by the rains, leaving the inner surface of the gleba exposed, and showing certain characters peculiar to the various genera.
Among the stink-horns are a number of genera which are very interesting from the peculiarities of development; and some of which are very beautiful and curious objects, although they do possess offensive odors. In some of the genera, the upper part of the plant expands into leaf-like—or petal-like, bodies, which are highly colored and resemble flowers. They are sometimes called "fungus flowers."
Dictyophorameans "net bearer," and as one can see from Fig.212it is not an inappropriate name. The stem or receptacle, as one can see from the illustrations of the two species treated of here, possesses a very coarse mesh, so that not only the surface but the substance within is reticulated, pitted and irregularly perforated. In the genusDictyophoraan outer layer of the receptacle or stem is separated as it elongates, breaks away from the lower part of the stem, is carried aloft, and hangs as a beautiful veil. This veil is very conspicuous in some species and less so in others.
Dictyophora duplicata(Bosc.) Ed. Fischer.—This species is illustrated in Fig.212, made from plants collected at Ithaca. The plants are from 15–22 cm. high, the cap about 5 cm. in diameter, and the stem 2–3 cm. in thickness. According to Burt (Bot. Gaz.22: 387, 1896) it is a common species in the Eastern United States. The cap is more or less bell-shaped and the sculptured surface is marked in a beautiful manner with the reticulations.