CHAPTER XVI.

Plate 83, Figure 212.—Dictyophora duplicata. White (natural size). Copyright.

Plate 84, Figure 213.—Dictyophora ravenelii. Mature plants showing volva at base; elongated receptacle, cap at the top, and veil surrounding the receptacle under the cap (natural size). Copyright.

Figure 214.—Dictyophora ravenelii. Egg stage, caps just bursting through the volva (natural size). Copyright.

Figure 215.—Dictyophora ravenelii. Sections of eggs, and showing cords of mycelium (natural size). Copyright.

Dictyophora ravenelii(B. & C.) Burt.—This plant also has a wide distribution in the Eastern United States. The stem is more slender than in the other species,D. duplicata, the pileus more nearly conic, and the surface of the pileus is merely granular or minutely wrinkled after the disappearance of the gleba, and does not present the strong reticulating ridges and crests which that species shows. The plants are from 10 to 18 cm. high. It grows in woods and fields about rotting wood, and in sawdust. The veil is very thin and delicate, formingsimply a membrane, and does not possess the coarse meshes present in the veil ofD. duplicata. The Figs.214,215represent the different stages in the elongation of the receptacle of this plant, and the rupture of the volva. This elongation takes place quite rapidly. While photographing the plant as it was bursting through the volva, I had considerable difficulty in getting a picture, since the stem elongated so rapidly that the plant would show that it had moved perceptibly, and the picture would be blurred.

In a woods near Ithaca a large number of these plants have appeared from year to year in a pile of sawdust. One of the most vile smelling plants of this family is theIthyphallus impudicus.

The remaining fungi to be considered belong to a very different group of plants than do the mushrooms, puff-balls, etc. Nevertheless, because of the size of several of the species and the fact that several of them are excellent for food, some attention will be given to a few. The entire group is sometimes spoken of asDiscomycetesorcup-fungi, because many of the plants belonging here are shaped something like a disk, or like a cup. The principal way in which they differ from the mushrooms, the puff-balls, etc., is found in the manner in which the spores are borne. In the mushrooms, etc., the spores, we recollect, are borne on the end of a club-shaped body, usually four spores on one of these. In this group, however, the spores are borne inside of club-shaped bodies, called sacs or asci (singular, ascus). These sacs, or asci, are grouped together, lying side by side, forming the fruiting surface or hymenium, much as the basidia form the fruiting surface in the mushrooms. In the case of the cup or disk forms, the upper side of the disk, or the upper and inner surface of the cap, is covered with these sacs, standing side by side, so that the free ends of the sacs form the outer surface. In the case of the morel the entire outer surface of the upper portion of the plant, that where there are so many pits, is covered with similar sacs. Since so few of the genera and species of the morels and cup-fungi will be treated of here, I shall not attempt to compare the genera or even to give the characters by which the genera are known. Inmost cases the illustrations will serve this purpose so far as it is desirable to accomplish it in such a work as the present. Certain of the species will then be described and illustrated.

Plate 85, Figure 216.—Morchella esculenta (natural size). Copyright.

The morels are all edible and they are usually easy to recognize. The plant consists of two distinct, prominent parts, the cap and the stem. The cap varies in form from rounded, ovate, conic or cylindrical, or bell-shaped, but it is always marked by rather broad pits, covering the entire outer surface, which are separated from each other by ridges forming a network. The color of the plants does not differ to any perceptible extent in our species. The cap is usually buff or light ochre yellow, becoming darker with age and in drying.

The stem in all our species is usually quite stout, though it varies to some extent in some of the different species, in proportion to the thickness of the cap. The stem is marked in some of the species by large wrinkles or folds extending irregularly but with considerable uniformity over the surface. The surface is further minutely roughened by whitish or grayish elevations, giving it a granular appearance. Sometimes these granules are quite evenly distributed over the surface, and in some species they are more or less separated into small areas by narrow lines.

The morels appear early in the season, during May and June. They grow usually in damp situations, and are more abundant during rainy weather. Three species are illustrated here.

Morchella esculentaPers.Edible.—The name of this species, the esculent morel, indicates that it has been long known as an edible plant, especially since the man who named it lived a century ago. The plant is from 5–15 cm. high, the stem is 1–3 cm. in thickness, and the cap is broader than the stem. The cap is somewhat longer than broad, and is more or less oval or rounded in outline. The arrangement of the pits on the surface of the cap is regarded by some as being characteristic of certain species. In this species the pits are irregularly arranged, so that they do not form rows, and so that the ridges separating them do not run longitudinally from the base toward the apex of the cap, but run quite irregularly. This arrangement can be seen in Fig.216, which is from a photograph of this species. The stem is hollow.

Morchella conicaPers.Edible.—This species is very closely related to the preceding one, and is considered by some to be only a form of theMorchella esculenta. The size is about the same, the only difference being in the somewhat longer cap and especially in the arrangementof the pits. These are arranged more or less in distinct rows, so that the ridges separating them run longitudinally and parallel from the base of the cap to the apex, with connecting ridges extending across between the pits. The cap is also more or less conic, but not necessarily so. Figure 217 illustrates this species. The plant shown here is branched, and this should not be taken to be a character of the species, for it is not, this form being rather rare.

Figure 217.—Morchella conica (natural size). Copyright.

Plate 86, Figure 218.—Morchella crassipes (natural size). Copyright.

Morchella crassipes(Vent.) Pers.Edible.—This species differs from the two preceding in the fact that the stem is nearly equal in width with the cap. Figure218illustrates a handsome specimen which was 17 cm. high. The granular surface and the folds of the stem show very distinctly and beautifully. Collected at Ithaca.

Morchella deliciosaFr.Edible, has the cap cylindrical or nearly so. It is longer than the stem, and is usually two or three times as long as it is broad. The plant is smaller than the preceding, though large ones may equal in size small ones of those two. The plant is from 4–8 cm. high.

Morchella semiliberaDC., andM. bisporaSor., [Verpa bohemica(Kromb.) Schroet.] occur in this country, and are interesting from the fact that the cap is bell-shaped, the lower margin being free from the stem. In the latter species there are only two spores in an ascus.

The helvellas are pretty and attractive plants. They are smaller than the morels, usually. They have a cap and stem, the cap being very irregular in shape, often somewhat lobed or saddle-shaped. It is smooth, or nearly so, at least it is not marked by the large pits present in the cap of the morel, and this is one of the principal distinguishing features of the helvellas as compared with the morels. In one species the thin cap has its lower margin free from the stem. This isHelvella crispaFr., and it has a white or whitish cap, and a deeply furrowed stem. It occurs in woods during the summer and autumn, and is known as the white helvella.

Figure 219.—Helvella lacunosa (natural size). Copyright.

Another species which has a wide range is theHelvella lacunosa, so called because of the deep longitudinal grooves in the stem. The cap is thin, but differs from theH. crispain that the lower margin is connected with the stem. This species is illustrated in Fig.219from plants collected at Blowing Rock, N. C., during September, 1899.

The genusGyromitrais very closely related toHelvella, and is only distinguished by the fact that the cap is marked by prominent folds and convolutions, resembling somewhat the convolutions of the brain. Its name meansconvoluted cap. TheGyromitra esculentaFr., is from 5–10 cm. high, and the cap from 5–7 cm. broad. While this species has long been reported as an edible one, and has been employed in many instances as food with no evil results, there are known cases where it has acted as a poison. In many cases where poisoning has resulted the plants were quite old and probably in the incipient stages of decay. However, it is claimed that a poisonous principle, calledhelvellic acid, has been isolated by a certain chemist, which acts as a violent poison. This principle is very soluble in hot water, and when care is used to drain off first water in which they have been cooked, squeezing the water well from the plants, they are pronounced harmless. The safer way would be to avoid such suspicious species.

Figure 220.—Spathularia velutipes (natural size). Copyright.

Spathularia velutipesCooke & Farlow.—This species represents another interesting genus of theDiscomycetes. It is in the form of a "spatula," and from this shape of the plant the genus takes its name. There are several species known in this country, and this one is quitecommon. The stem extends the entire length of the plant, running right through the cap, or perhaps it would be better to say that the cap or fruiting portion forms two narrow blades or wings on opposite sides of the upper part of the stem. These wing-like expansions of the cap on the opposite sides of the stem give the spathulate form to the plant. Figure 220 is from plants collected in the woods near Ithaca.

Figure 221.—Leotia lubrica (natural size). Copyright.

Leotia lubricaPers.—The genusLeotiais quite readily recognized by its form, and because the plants are usually slimy. This species is calledlubricabecause of the slippery character of the entire plant. It is dull yellowish or olive yellow in color. The cap, as can be seen from the figure (221), is irregularly rounded, and broader than the stem. The plant is illustrated natural size from specimens collected near Ithaca.

By far the larger number of theDiscomycetesare cup-shaped, and are popularly called "cup-fungi." They vary from plants of very minute size, so small that they can be just seen with the eye, or some of the larger ones are several inches in breadth. They grow on the ground, on leaves, wood, etc. The variety of form and color is great. They may be sessile, that is, the cup rests immediately on the ground or wood, or leaves, or they may possess a short, or rather long stalk. The only species illustrated here has a comparatively long stalk, and the cap is deep cup-shaped, almost like a beaker. This plant is technically known asSarcoscypha floccosa. It is representedhere natural size (Fig.222). The stem is slender, and the rim of the cup is beset with long, strigose hairs. The inner surface of the cup is lined with the sacs (asci) and sterile threads (paraphyses), spoken of on a former page, when treating of the fruiting character of the morels and cup-fungi. In this plant the color of the inside of the cup is very beautiful, being a bright red. Another species,Sarcoscypha coccinea, the scarlet sarcoscypha, is a larger plant which appears in very early spring, soon after the frost is out of the ground. It grows on rotting logs and wood in the woods or in groves. The inside of the cup in this species is a rich scarlet, and from this rich color the species takes its name.

Figure 222.—Sarcoscypha floccosa (natural size). Copyright.

In the collection of the higher fungi it is of the utmost importance that certain precautions be employed in obtaining all parts of the plant, and furthermore that care be exercised in handling, in order not to remove or efface delicate characters. Not only is it important for the beginner, but in many instances an "expert" may not be able to determine a specimen which may have lost what undoubtedly seem, to some, trivial marks. The suggestions given here should enable one to collect specimens in such a way as to protect these characters while fresh, to make notes of the important evanescent characters and to dry and preserve them properly for future study. For collecting a number of specimens under a variety of conditions the following list of "apparatus" is recommended:

One or two oblong or rectangular hand baskets, capacity from 8–12 quarts.

Or a rectangular zinc case with a closely fitting top (not the ordinary botanical collecting case).

Half a dozen or so tall pasteboard boxes, or tins, 3 × 3, or 4 × 4, × 5 inches deep, to hold certain species in an upright position.

A quantity of tissue paper cut 8 × 10 or 6 × 8 inches.

Smaller quantity of waxed tissue paper for wrapping viscid or sticky plants.

Trowel; a stout knife; memorandum pad and pencil.

Collecting.—During the proper season, and when rains are abundant, the mushrooms are to be found in open fields, waste places, groves and woods. They are usually more abundant in the forests. Especially in dry weather are specimens more numerous in rather damp woods, along ravines or streams. In collecting specimens which grow on the ground the trowel should be used to dig up the plant carefully, to be sure that no important part of the plant is left in the ground. After one has become familiar with the habit of the different kinds the trowel will not be necessary in all cases. For example, most species ofRussula,Lactarius,Tricholoma,Boletus, etc., are not deeply seated in the soil, and careful hand-picking will in most cases secure specimens properly, especially if one does not object to digging in the soil with the fingers. But in the case of most species ofAmanita, certain species ofLepiota,Collybia, etc., a trowel is necessary to get up the base of the plant in such a way as to preserve essential characters. Even then it is possible, if the ground is not too hard, to dig them out with the fingers, or with a stout knife, but I have often found specimens which could only be taken up with a trowel or spade.

Species growing on sticks or leaves are easily collected by taking a portion of the substratum on which they grow. Specimens on the larger limbs or trunks or stumps can sometimes be "picked," but until one is accustomed to certain individualities of the plant it is well to employ the knife and to cut off a portion of the wood if necessary, to avoid cutting off the base of the stem.

It is necessary also to handle the specimens with the greatest care to avoid leaving finger marks where the surface of the stem or cap is covered with a soft and delicate outer coat, especially if one wishes to photograph the plant, since rubbed or marked places spoil the plant for this purpose. Also a little careless handling will remove such important characters as a frail annulus or volva, which often are absolutely necessary to recognize the species.

Having collected the specimens, they should be properly placed in the basket or collecting case. Those which are quite firm, and not long and slender, can be wrapped with tissue paper (waxed tissue paper if they are viscid or sticky), and placed directly in the basket, with some note or number to indicate habitat or other peculiarity which it is desirable to make at the time of collection. The smaller, more slender and fragile, specimens can be wrapped in tissue paper (a cluster of several individuals can be frequently rolled up together) made in the form of a narrow funnel and the ends then twisted. The shape of the paper enables one to wrap them in such a way as to protect certain delicate characters on the stem or cap. These can then be stood upright in the small pasteboard boxes which should occupy a portion of the basket. A number of such wrappers can be placed in a single box, unless the specimens are of considerable size and numerous. In these boxes they are prevented from being crushed by the jostling of the larger specimens in the basket. These boxes have the additional advantage of preserving certain specimens entire and upright if one wishes later to photograph them.

Field Notes.—The field notes which may be taken upon the collection will depend on circumstances. If one goes to the sorting room soon after the collection is made, so that notes can be made there before the more delicate specimens dry, few notes will answer in the field, and usually one is so busy collecting or hunting for specimens there is not much inclination to make extended notes in the field. But it is quite important to note thehabitatandenvironment, i. e., the place where they grow, the kind and character of the soil, in open field, roadside, grove, woods, on ground, leaves, sticks, stumps, trunks, rotting wood, or on living tree, etc. It is very important also that different kinds be kept separate. The student will recognize the importance of this and other suggestions much more than the new "fungus hunter."

Sorting Room.—When one returns from a collecting trip it is best to take the plants as soon as possible to a room where they can be assorted. An hour or so delay usually does not matter, but the sooner they are attended to the better. Sometimes when they are carefully placed in the basket, as described above, they may be kept over night without injury, but this will depend on thekindsin the collection.Copriniare apt to deliquesce, certain other specimens, especially in warm weather, are apt to be so infested with larvæ that they will be ruined by morning, when immediate drying might save them. Other thin and delicate ones, especially in dry weather, will dry out so completely that one loses the opportunity of takingnotes on the fresh specimen. Specimens to be photographed should be attended to at once, unless it is too late in the day, when they should be set aside in an upright position, and if necessary under a bell-jar, until the following day. As far as possible good specimens should be selected for the photograph, representing different stages of development, and one to show the fruiting surface. Sometimes it will be necessary to make more than one photograph to obtain all the stages. Also on different days one is apt to obtain a specimen representing an important stage in development not represented before. The plants should be arranged close together to economize space, but not usually touching nor too crowded. They should be placed in their natural position as far as possible, and means for support, if used, should be hidden behind the plant. They should be so arranged as to show individual as well as specific character and should be photographed if possible natural size, or at least not on a plate smaller than 5 × 7 inches unless the plants are small; while larger ones are better on 6 × 8 or larger. Some very small ones it may be necessary to enlarge in order to show the character of the fruiting surface, and even large specimens can sometimes have a portion of the hymenium enlarged to good advantage if it is desirable to show the characters clearly. The background should be selected to bring out the characters strongly, and in the exposure and developing it is often necessary to disregard the effect of the background in order to bring out the detail of texture on the plant itself. The background should be renewed as often as necessary to have it uniform and neat. There is much more that might be said under this head, but there is not space here.

To Obtain Spore Prints.—In many cases it is desirable to obtain spores in a mass on paper in order to know the exact tint of color produced by the species. Often the color of the spores can be satisfactorily determined by an examination of them under the microscope. One cannot always depend on the color of the lamellæ since a number of the species possess colored cystidia or spines in the hymenium which disguise the color of the spores. The best way to determine the color of the spores in mass is to catch them as they fall from the fruiting surface on paper. For the ordinary purpose of study and reference in the herbarium the spores caught on unprepared paper, which later may be placed in the packet with the specimen, will answer. This method has the advantage of saving time, and also the danger of injury to the spores from some of the fixatives on prepared paper is avoided. If for purposesof illustration one wishes pretty spore prints, perfect caps must be cut from the stem and placed fruiting surface downward on paper prepared with some gum arable or similar preparation spread over it, while the paper is still moist with the fixative, and then the specimen must be covered with abell-jaror other receiver to prevent even the slightest draft of air, otherwise the spores will float around more or less. The spores may be caught on a thin, absorbent paper, and the paper then be floated on the fixative in a shallow vessel until it soaks through and comes in contact with the spores. I have sometimes used white of egg as a fixative. These pieces of paper can then be cut out and either glued to card-boards, or onto the herbarium sheet.

Sorting the Plants.—This should be done as soon as possible after collection. A large table in the sorting room is convenient, upon which the specimens may be spread, or grouped rather, by species, the individuals of a species together, on sheets of paper. Surplus dirt, or wood, leaves, etc., can be removed. A few of the specimens can be turned so that spores can be caught on the papers. If only one or a few specimens of a given species have been found, and it is desirable not to cut off the cap from the stem, the plant can be supported in an upright position, a small piece of paper slit at one side can be slipped around the stem underneath the cap, on which the spores will fall. Sometimes it will be necessary to cover the plant with a bell-jar in order to prevent it from drying before the spores are shed. Experience with different species will suggest the treatment necessary.

Taking Notes on the Specimens.—Very few probably realize the desirability of making notes of certain characters while the plants are fresh, for future reference, or for use by those to whom the plants may be sent for determination. It is some trouble to do this, and when the different kinds are plentiful the temptation is strong to neglect it. When one has available books for determination of the species, as many as possible should be studied and determined while fresh. But it is not always possible to satisfactorily determine all. Some may be too difficult for ready recognition, others may not be described in the books at hand, or poorly so, and further the number of kinds may be too great for determination before they will spoil. On these as well as on some of the interesting ones recognized, it is important to make a record of certain characters. These notes should be kept either with the specimen, or a number should be given the specimen and the notes kept separately with the corresponding number.

MEMORANDA.

No.____. Locality, Date. Name of collector.Weather.Habitat.—If on ground, low or high, wet or dry, kind of soil; on fallen leaves, twigs, branches, logs, stumps, roots, whether dead or living, kind of tree; in open fields, pastures, etc., woods, groves, etc., mixed woods or evergreen, oak, chestnut, etc.Plants.—Whether solitary, clustered, tufted, whether rooting or not, taste, odor, color when bruised or cut, and if a change in color takes place after exposure to the air.Cap.—Whether dry, moist, watery in appearance (hygrophanous), slimy, viscid, glutinous; color when young, when old; whether with fine bloom, powder; kind of scales and arrangement, whether free from the cuticle and easily rubbed off. Shape of cap.Margin of Cap.—Whether straight or incurved when young, whether striate or not when moist.Stem.—Whether slimy, viscid, glutinous, kind of scales if not smooth, whether striate, dotted, granular, color; when there are several specimens test one to see if it is easily broken out from the cap, also to see if it is fibrous, or fleshy, or cartilaginous (firm on the outside, partly snapping and partly tough). Shape of the stem.Gills or Tubes.—Color when young, old, color when bruised, and if color changes, whether soft, waxy, brittle, or tough; sharp or blunt, plane or serrate edge.Milk.—Color if present, changing after exposure, taste.Veil.—(Inner veil.) Whether present or not, character, whether arachnoid, and if so whether free from cuticle of pileus or attached only to the edge; whether fragile, persistent, disappearing, slimy, etc., movable, etc.Ring.—Present or absent, fragile, or persistent, whether movable, viscid, etc.Volva.—Present or absent, persistent or disappearing, whether it splits at apex or is circumscissile, or all crumbly and granular or floccose, whether the part on the pileus forms warts, and then the kind, distribution, shape, persistence, etc.Spores.—Color when caught on white paper.

No.____. Locality, Date. Name of collector.

Weather.

Habitat.—If on ground, low or high, wet or dry, kind of soil; on fallen leaves, twigs, branches, logs, stumps, roots, whether dead or living, kind of tree; in open fields, pastures, etc., woods, groves, etc., mixed woods or evergreen, oak, chestnut, etc.

Plants.—Whether solitary, clustered, tufted, whether rooting or not, taste, odor, color when bruised or cut, and if a change in color takes place after exposure to the air.

Cap.—Whether dry, moist, watery in appearance (hygrophanous), slimy, viscid, glutinous; color when young, when old; whether with fine bloom, powder; kind of scales and arrangement, whether free from the cuticle and easily rubbed off. Shape of cap.

Margin of Cap.—Whether straight or incurved when young, whether striate or not when moist.

Stem.—Whether slimy, viscid, glutinous, kind of scales if not smooth, whether striate, dotted, granular, color; when there are several specimens test one to see if it is easily broken out from the cap, also to see if it is fibrous, or fleshy, or cartilaginous (firm on the outside, partly snapping and partly tough). Shape of the stem.

Gills or Tubes.—Color when young, old, color when bruised, and if color changes, whether soft, waxy, brittle, or tough; sharp or blunt, plane or serrate edge.

Milk.—Color if present, changing after exposure, taste.

Veil.—(Inner veil.) Whether present or not, character, whether arachnoid, and if so whether free from cuticle of pileus or attached only to the edge; whether fragile, persistent, disappearing, slimy, etc., movable, etc.

Ring.—Present or absent, fragile, or persistent, whether movable, viscid, etc.

Volva.—Present or absent, persistent or disappearing, whether it splits at apex or is circumscissile, or all crumbly and granular or floccose, whether the part on the pileus forms warts, and then the kind, distribution, shape, persistence, etc.

Spores.—Color when caught on white paper.

To the close observer additional points of interest will often be noted.

To Dry the Specimens.—Frequently the smaller specimens will dry well when left in the room, especially in dry weather, or better ifthey are placed where there is a draft of air. Some dry them in the sun. But often the sun is not shining, and the weather may be rainy or the air very humid, when it is impossible to dry the specimens properly except by artificial heat. The latter method is better for the larger specimens at all times. During the autumn when radiators are heated the fungi dry well when placed on or over them. One of the best places which I have utilized is the brick work around a boiler connected with a mountain hotel. Two other methods are, however, capable of wider application.

1st.—A tin oven about 2 × 2 feet, and two or several feet high, with one side hinged as a door, and with several movable shelves of perforated tin, or of wire netting; a vent at the top, and perforations around the sides at the bottom to admit air. The object being to provide for a constant current of air from below upwards between the specimens. This may be heated, if not too large, with a lamp, though an oil stove or gas jet or heater is better. The specimens are placed on the shelves with the accompanying notes or numbers. The height of this box can be extended where the number of specimens is great.

2d.—A very successful method which I employed at a summer resort at Blowing Rock, N. C., in the mountains of North Carolina, during September, 1899, was as follows: An old cook stove was set up in an unoccupied cottage, with two wire screens from 3 × 4 feet, one above the other, the lower one about one foot above the top of the stove. Large numbers can be dried on these frames. Care of course must be taken that the plants are not burned. In all cases the plants must be so placed that air will circulate under and around them, otherwise they are apt to blacken.

When the plants are dry they are very brittle and must be handled carefully. When removed from the drier many kinds soon absorb enough moisture to become pliant so that they are not easily broken. Others remain brittle. They may be put away in small boxes; or pressed out nearly flat,not so as to crush the gills, and then put in paper packets. The plants which do not absorb sufficient moisture from the air, so that they are pliant enough to press, can be placed in small boxes or on paper in a large box with peat moss in the bottom, and the box then closed tightly until they absorb enough moisture to become flexible. The plants must not get wet, and they should be examined every half hour or so, for some become limp much sooner than others. If the plants get too moist the gills crush together when pressed, and otherwise they do not make such good specimens. When the specimens are dried and placed in the herbariumthey must be protected from insects. Some are already infested with insects which the process of drying does not kill. They must be either poisoned with corrosive sublimate in alcohol, or fumigated with carbon disulphide, and if the latter it must be repeated one or two times at an interval of a month to catch those which were in the egg state the first time. When placed in the herbarium or in a box for storage, naphtha balls can be placed with them to keep out insects, but it should be understood that the naphtha balls will not kill or drive away insects already in the specimens. Where there are enough duplicates, some specimens preserved in 75 per cent. alcohol, under the same number, are of value for the study of structural characters.

In the selection of mushrooms to eat, great caution should be employed by those who are not reasonably familiar with the means of determination of the species, or those who have not an intimate acquaintance with certain forms. Rarely should the beginner be encouraged to eat them upon his own determination. It is best at first to consult some one who knows, or to send first specimens away for determination, though in many cases a careful comparison of the plant with the figures and descriptions given in this book will enable a novice to recognize it. In taking up a species for the first time it would be well to experiment cautiously.

No Certain Rule to Distinguish the Poisonous from the Edible.—There is no certain test, like the "silver spoon test," which will enable one to tell the poisonous mushroom from the edible ones. Nor is the presence of the so-called "death cup" a sure sign that the fungus is poisonous, for theAmanita cæsareahas this cup. For the beginner, however, there are certain general rules, which, if carefully followed, will enable him to avoid the poisonous ones, while at the same time necessarily excluding many edible ones.

1st.—Reject all fungi which have begun to decay, or which are infested with larvæ.2d.—Reject all fungi when in the button stage, since the characters are not yet shown which enable one to distinguish the genera and species. Buttons in pasture lands which are at the surfaceof the ground and not deep-seated in the soil, would very likely not belong to any of the very poisonous kinds.3d.—Reject all fungi which have a cup or sac-like envelope at the base of the stem, or which have a scaly or closely fitting layer at the base of the stem, and rather loose warts on the pileus, especially if the gills are white.Amanita cæsareahas a sac-like envelope at the base of the stem, and yellow gills as well as a yellow cap, and is edible.Amanita rubescenshas remnants of a scaly envelope on the base of the stem and loose warts on the cap, and the flesh where wounded becomes reddish. It is edible. (See plate19.)4th.—Reject all fungi with a milky juice unless the juice is reddish. Several species with copious white milk, sweet or mild to the taste, are edible (seeLactarius volemusandcorrugis).5th.—Reject very brittle fungi with gills nearly all of equal length, where the flesh of the cap is thin, especially those with bright caps.6th.—Reject all Boleti in which the flesh changes color where bruised or cut, or those in which the tubes have reddish mouths, also those the taste of which is bitter.Strobilomyces strobilaceuschanges color when cut, and is edible.7th.—Reject fungi which have a cobwebby veil or ring when young, and those with slimy caps and clay-colored spores.

1st.—Reject all fungi which have begun to decay, or which are infested with larvæ.

2d.—Reject all fungi when in the button stage, since the characters are not yet shown which enable one to distinguish the genera and species. Buttons in pasture lands which are at the surfaceof the ground and not deep-seated in the soil, would very likely not belong to any of the very poisonous kinds.

3d.—Reject all fungi which have a cup or sac-like envelope at the base of the stem, or which have a scaly or closely fitting layer at the base of the stem, and rather loose warts on the pileus, especially if the gills are white.Amanita cæsareahas a sac-like envelope at the base of the stem, and yellow gills as well as a yellow cap, and is edible.Amanita rubescenshas remnants of a scaly envelope on the base of the stem and loose warts on the cap, and the flesh where wounded becomes reddish. It is edible. (See plate19.)

4th.—Reject all fungi with a milky juice unless the juice is reddish. Several species with copious white milk, sweet or mild to the taste, are edible (seeLactarius volemusandcorrugis).

5th.—Reject very brittle fungi with gills nearly all of equal length, where the flesh of the cap is thin, especially those with bright caps.

6th.—Reject all Boleti in which the flesh changes color where bruised or cut, or those in which the tubes have reddish mouths, also those the taste of which is bitter.Strobilomyces strobilaceuschanges color when cut, and is edible.

7th.—Reject fungi which have a cobwebby veil or ring when young, and those with slimy caps and clay-colored spores.

In addition, proceed cautiously in all cases, and make it a point to become very familiar with a few species first, and gradually extend the range of species, rather than attempt the first season to eat a large number of different kinds.

All puff-balls are edible so long as they are white inside, though some are better than others. All coral-like or club fungi are edible.

To Clean and Prepare the Specimens.—The mushrooms having been collected, all tough stems, the parts to which earth clings, should be removed. After the specimens are selected, if there is danger that some of them may be infested with larvæ, it is well to cut off the stem close to the cap, for if the insects are in the stem and have not yet reached the cap they may thus be cast away. Some recommend that the tubes of all Boleti be removed, since they are apt to make a slimy mass in cooking.

Where the plants are small they may be cooked entire. Large ones should be quartered, or cut, or sliced, according to the size and form of the plant, or method of cooking.

The most prominent and at present important use of mushrooms from the standpoint of the utilitarian is as an article of food. We have now learned that their food value as a nutrient substance is not so great as has been fondly supposed, but, as Mr. Clark points out in Chapter XXII, in addition to the value they certainly do possess as food, they have very great value as condiments or food accessories, and "their value as such is beyond the computation of the chemist or physiologist. They are among the most appetizing of table delicacies, and add greatly to the palatability of many foods when cooked with them." Mushrooms undoubtedly possess a food value beyond that attributed to them by the chemist or physiologist, since it is not possible in laboratory analysis to duplicate the conditions which exist in the natural digestion and assimilation of foods.

Probably the larger number of persons, in America, at present interested in mushrooms, are chiefly concerned with them as an article of food, but a great many of these persons love to tramp to the fields and woods in quest of them just as the sportsman loves to hunt his game with dog and gun. It is quite likely that there will always be a large body of persons who will maintain a lively interest in the collection ofgamemushrooms for food. There are several reasons for this. The zest of the search, the pleasure of discovery, and the healthfulness of the outdoor recreation lend an appetizing flavor to the fruits of the chase not to be obtained by purchasing a few pounds of cultivated mushrooms on the market. It cultivates powers of observation, and arouses a sympathetic feeling toward nature, and with those outdoor environments of man which lend themselves so happily in bettering and brightening life, as well as in prolonging it.

Many others are discovering that the observation of form and habits of mushrooms is a very interesting occupation for those who have short periods of time at their disposal weekly. It requires but a little observation to convince one that there is an interesting variety of form among these plants, that their growth and expansionoperate in conformity with certain laws which result in great variation in form and habit of the numerous kinds on the ground, on leaves, on branches, on tree trunks, etc.

Another very favorable indication accompanying the increasing interest in the study of these plants, is the recognition of their importance as objects for nature study. There are many useful as well as interesting lessons taught by mushrooms to those who stop to read their stories. The long growth period of the spawn in the ground, or in the tree trunk, where it may sometimes be imprisoned for years, sometimes a century, or more, before the mushroom appears, is calculated to dispel the popular notion that the mushroom "grows in a night." Then from the button stage to the ripe fruit, several days, a week, a month, or a year may be needed, according to the kind, while some fruiting forms are known to live from several to eighty or more years. The adjustment of the fruit cap to a position most suitable for the scattering of the spores, the different ways in which the fruit cap opens and expands, the different forms of the fruit surface, their colors and other peculiarities, suggest topics for instructive study and observation. The inclination, just now becoming apparent, to extend nature study topics to include mushrooms is an evidence of a broader and more sympathetic attitude toward nature.

A little extension of one's observation on the habits of these plants in the woods will reveal the fact that certain ones are serious enemies of timber trees and timber. It is quite easy in many cases for one possessing no technical knowledge of the subject to read the story of these "wood destroying" fungi in the living tree. Branches broken by snow, by wind, or by falling timber provide entrance areas where the spores, lodging on the heart wood of broken timber, or on a bruise on the side of the trunk which has broken through the living part of the tree lying just beneath the bark, provide a point for entrance. The living substance (protoplasm) in the spawn exudes a "juice" (enzyme) which dissolves an opening in the wood cells and permits the spawn to enter the heart of the tree, where decay rapidly proceeds as a result. But very few of these plants can enter the tree when the living part underneath the bark is unbroken.

These observations suggest useful topics for thought. They suggest practical methods of prevention, careful forestry treatment and careful lumbering to protect the young growth when timber trees are felled. They suggest careful pruning of fruit and shade trees,by cutting limbs smooth and close to the trunk, and then painting the smooth surface with some lead paint.

While we are thus apt to regard many of the mushrooms as enemies of the forest, they are, at the same time, of incalculable use to the forest. The mushrooms are nature's most active agents in the disposal of the forest's waste material. Forests that have developed without the guidance of man have been absolutely dependent upon them for their continued existence. Where the species of mushrooms are comparatively few which attack living trees, there are hundreds of kinds ready to strike into fallen timber. There is a degree of moisture present on the forest floor exactly suited to the rapid growth of the mycelium of numbers of species in the bark, sap wood, and heart wood of the fallen trees or shrubs. In a few years the branches begin to crumble because of the disorganizing effect of the mycelium in the wood. Other species adapted to growing in rotting wood follow and bring about, in a few years, the complete disintegration of the wood. It gradually passes into the soil of the forest floor, and is made available food for the living trees. How often one notices that seedling trees and shrubs start more abundantly on rotting logs.

The fallen leaves, too, are seized upon by the mycelium of a great variety of mushrooms. It is through the action of the mycelium of mushrooms of every kind that the fallen forest leaves, as well as the trunks and branches, are converted into food for the living trees. The fungi, are, therefore, one of the most important agents in providing available food for the virgin forest.

The spawn of some fungi in the forest goes so far, in a number of cases, as to completely envelop those portions of the roots of certain trees as to prevent the possibility of the roots taking up food material and moisture on their own account. In such cases, the oaks, beeches, hornbeams, and the like, have the younger parts of their roots completely enveloped with a dense coat of mycelium. The mycelium in these cases absorbs the moisture from the soil or forest floor and conveys it over to the roots of the tree, and in this way supplies them with both food and water from the decaying humus, the oak being thus dependent on the mycelium. In the fields, however, where there is not the abundance of humus and decaying leaves present in the forest, the coating of mycelium on the roots of these trees is absent, and in this latter case the young roots are provided with root hairs which take up the moisture and food substances from the soil in the ordinary way.

The mushrooms also prevent the forest from becoming chokedor strangled by its own fallen members. Were it not for the action of the mushroom mycelium in causing the decay of fallen timber in the forest, in time it would be piled so high as to allow only a miserable existence to a few choked individuals. The action of the mushrooms in thus disposing of the fallen timber in the forests, and in converting dead trees and fallen leaves into available food for the living ones, is probably the most important role in the existence of these plants. Mushrooms, then, are to be given very high rank among the natural agencies which have contributed to the good of the world. When we contemplate the vast areas of forest in the world we can gain some idea of the stupendous work performed by the mushrooms in "house cleaning," and in "preparing food," work in which they are still engaged.

A number of different species of mushrooms have been employed in the manufacture of useful articles. Their use for such purposes, however, was more common in the past than at present, and it is largely therefore a matter of interest at the present time, though some are still employed for purposes of this kind.

Tinder mushroom, or amadou.—ThePolyporus fomentarius, or "tinder mushroom" or, as it is sometimes called, "German tinder," was once employed in the manufacture of tinder. The outer hard coat was removed and the central portion, consisting almost entirely of the tube system of several years' growth, was cut into strips and beaten to a soft condition. In this form it was used as tinder for striking fire.

The inner portion was also used in making caps, chest-protectors, and similar articles. A process now in vogue in some parts of Germany, is to steam the fruit bodies, remove the outer crust, and then, by machinery constructed for the purpose, shave the fruit body into a long, thin strip by revolving it against a knife in much the same way that certain woods are shaved into thin strips for the manufacture of baskets, plates, etc. Some articles of clothing made from this fungus material are worn by peasants in certain parts of Europe.

Mushrooms for razor strops.—The beech polyporus (P. betulinus) several centuries ago was used for razor strops. The fruit body after being dried was cut into strips, glued upon a stretcher, and smoothed down with pumice stone (Asa Gray Bull. 7: 18, 1900). The sheets of the weeping merulius (see Fig.189) were also employed for the same purpose, as were also the sheets of "punk"formed from mycelium filling in cracks in old logs or between boards in lumber piles. Sometimes extensive sheets of this punk are found several feet long and a foot or more wide. These sheets of pure mycelium resemble soft chamois skin or soiled kid leather.

Mushrooms employed for flower pots.—In Bohemia (according to Cooke, Fungi, etc., p. 103) hoof-shaped fruit bodies ofPolyporus fomentariusandigniariusare used for flower pots. The inner, or tube portion, is cut out. The hoof-shaped portion, then inverted and fastened to the side of a building or place of support, serves as a receptacle for soil in which plants are grown.

Curios.—ThePolyporus applanatusis much sought by some persons as a "curio," and also for the purpose of etching. In the latter case they serve as pastels for a variety of art purposes. The under surface of the plant is white. All collectors of this plant know that to preserve the white fruiting surface in a perfect condition it must be handled very carefully. A touch or bruise, or contact with other objects mars the surface, since a bruise or a scratch results in a rapid change in color of the injured surface. Beautiful etchings can thus be made with a fine pointed instrument, the lines of color appearing as the instrument is drawn over the surface.

Fungi for medicinal purposes.—A number of the fungi were formerly employed in medicine for various purposes, but most of them have been discarded. Some of the plants were once used as a purgative, as in the case of the officinal polyporus, the great puff ball, etc. The internal portion of the great puff ball has been used as an anodyne, and "formidable surgical operations have been performed under its influence." It is frequently used as a narcotic. Some species are employed as drugs by the Chinese. The anthelmintic polyporus is employed in Burmah as a vermifuge. The ergot of rye is still employed to some extent in medicine, and the ripe puff balls are still used in some cases to stop bleeding of wounds.

Luminosity of fungi.—While the luminosity possessed by certain fungi cannot be said to be of distinct utility, their phosphorescence is a noteworthy phenomenon. That decaying wood often emits this phosphorescent light has been widely observed, especially in wooded districts. It is due to the presence of the mycelium of one of the wood destroying fungi. The luminosity is often so bright that when brought near a printed page in the dark, words can be read. Hawthorne "reported the light from an improvised torch of mycelium infected wood, to have carried him safely several miles through an otherwise impassable forest." (Asa Gray, Bull.7: 7, 1900). The sulphur polyporus is said sometimes to be phosphorescent. TheClitocybe illudens(see Fig.92) has long been known to emit a strong phosphorescent light, and has been called "Jack-my-lantern." This plant often occurs in great abundance. At mountain hotels it is often brought in by day, and the guests at night, discovering its luminosity, trace grotesque figures, or monograms, on the ground by broken portions, which can be seen at a considerable distance.Lentinus stipticusin this country is also phosphorescent. In Europe, thePleurotus olearius(very closely related to ourClitocybe illudens) on dead olive trunks is one of the best known of the phosphorescent species. Other phosphorescent species are, according to Tulasne,A. igneusfrom Amboyna,A. noctileucusin Manila, andA. gardneriin Brazil.

The use of certain mushrooms in making intoxicant beverages is referred to in Chapter XXII.

Since the artificial cultivation of mushrooms for food is becoming quite an industry in this country with some, the following chapter is devoted to a treatment of the subject. Mention may be made here, however, of the attempts in parts of France to cultivate truffles, species of subterranean fungi belonging to the ascomycetes (various species of the genusTuber). It had long been observed that truffles grow in regions forested by certain trees, as the oak, beech, hornbeam, etc. Efforts were made to increase the production of truffles by planting certain regions to these trees. Especially in certain calcareous districts of France (see Cooke, Fungi, etc., p. 260) young plantations of oak, beech, or beech and fir, after the lapse of a few years, produced truffles. The spores of the truffles are in the soil, and the mycelium seems to maintain some symbiotic relation with the roots of the young trees, which results in the increase in the production of the fruit bodies. Dogs and pigs are employed in the collection of truffles from the ground.

Comparatively few of the truffles, or other subterranean fungi, have been found in America, owing probably to their subterranean habit, where they are not readily observed, and to the necessity of special search to find them. In California, however, Dr. Harkness (Proc. Calif. Acad. Sci.) has collected a large number of species and genera. Recently (Shear. Asa Gray Bull. 7: 118, 1899) reports finding a "truffle" (Terfezia oligospermaTul.) in Maryland, andT. leonisoccurs in Louisiana.

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