Part 3 (2/2)
+PAXILLUS = a small stake.+
This genus is fleshy, putrescent; at first the cap has the margin turned under (involute), then it unfolds gradually and dilates. There are some species of both Tricholoma and c.l.i.tocybe that resemble it. The gills separate easily from the cap, and in this it is similar to the Boleti, where the tubes separate also with ease.
SECTION 4. MELANOSPORae, DARK PURPLE OR BLACK SPORES.
+PSALLIOTA = a ring or collar.+
The common mushroom Agaricus campestris belongs to this group. The gills are rounded behind and free, the stem has a collar. There are many edible mushrooms in this genus. They grow in pastures, and the larger ones are called Champignons. In former times when one spoke of eating mushrooms the species A. campestris, or campester, was always the one denoted.
+STROPHARIA = a sword belt.+
This genus has a ring. The gills are generally attached to the stem; some species grow on the ground, and some grow on other fungi. They are sometimes bell-shaped and then flattened, often with a mound or umbo.
+HYPHOLOMA = web and fringe.+
The veil in this genus is woven in a web which adheres to the margin of the cap. The cap is more or less fleshy, and the margin at first incurved. The gills are attached or have a tooth. There is no ring. The plants grow in tufts on wood, or at the base of trees in the autumn.
+PSILOCYBE = naked and head.+
The cap in this genus is fleshy, smooth, and the margin at first incurved. Gills turn dusky purple. The stem is cartilaginous, hollow or stuffed. No veil is visible. They grow on the ground.
+PSATHYRA = friable.+
The cap is conical and soft, the margin at first straight, and then pressed to the stem. The plants are slender, fragile and moist. Gills become purple. They grow on the ground, or on trunks of trees.
+COPRINUS = dung.+
In this genus the spores are black. It has two distinctive features: one, that the gills cohere at first, and are not separated when young; and the other, that they dissolve into an inky fluid. The gills are also scissile, that is, they can be split, and are linear and swollen in the middle. The plants last but a short time. Some are edible.
ORDER 2. POLYPOREI, OR TUBE-BEARING FUNGI.
We now pa.s.s to the next order, the Polyporei. We will mention four genera:
+BOLETUS.+
The name is that of a fungus much prized for its delicacy by the Romans, and is derived from a Greek word meaning a clod, which denotes the round figure of the plant.
The Boleti grow on the ground, are fleshy and putrescent with central stems. The tubes are packed closely together and are easily separated.
+FISTULINA = a pipe.+
In this genus the tubes are free and distinct from one another. They are somewhat fleshy and grow upon wood.
+POLYPORUS = many pores.+
The pores or tubes in this genus are not separate from one another. They are persistent fungi, most of them growing upon wood.
+DAEDALEA = curiously wrought.+
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