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INTRODUCTION.
INTRODUCTION.
In the year 1876, as Microscopist of the Department of Agriculture, I prepared, as a part of the exhibit of my Division at the Centennial Exhibition at Philadelphia, a large collection of water-color drawings representing leading types of the edible and poisonous mushrooms of the United States, together with representations of about nine hundred species of microscopic fungi detrimental to vegetation. In the preparation of the first collection I had the valuable assistance of Prof. Charles H. Pec
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FUNGI.
FUNGI.
Botanists unite in describing the plants of this class as being destitute of chlorophyll and of starch. These plants assume an infinite variety of forms, and are propagated by spores which are individually so minute as to be scarcely perceptible to the naked eye. They are entirely cellular, and belong to the class Amphigens, which for the most part have no determinate axe, and develop in every direction, in contradistinction to the Acrogens, which develop from the summit, possessing an axe, leav
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CLASSIFICATION.
CLASSIFICATION.
Owing to the fact that botanists of various countries, writing in diverse languages, have for more than a century been engaged in describing the fungi of their respective countries, with their work frequently unknown to one another, it is not surprising that there has been constant revision, or that many changes have been made in the way of classification and nomenclature which to the amateur student are often confusing. The classification by the pioneer mycologist, Elias Fries, as presented in
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MUSHROOM GILLS.
MUSHROOM GILLS.
Mushroom gills, or lamellæ, anatomically considered, are composed, first, of a central portion, a prolongation of the hymenophore or flesh of the cap, more or less dense, sometimes so thin as to be scarcely perceptible; second, the hymenium or spore-bearing membrane covering the surfaces of this prolonged hymenophore. They are vertical, simple, equal, respectively, or more frequently alternating with shorter gills. They are often evanescent and putrescent, sometimes liquefying altogether. Their
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THE VOLVA.
THE VOLVA.
The volva is a membrane which envelops the entire plant in embryo, giving it the appearance of an egg. It originates at the base of the mushroom and furnishes it, during its fœtal life, with the means of support and nourishment. Its texture is so delicate that it generally disappears, leaving very little trace of its existence on the adult plant. In many of the volvate species this organ exists only so long as they are under ground, and some mycologists restrict the term "volvati" to such only a
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THE MUSHROOM VEIL.
THE MUSHROOM VEIL.
The veil is not a constant feature in the Agaricini, at least it is not always visible. When present it consists of a membrane which extends from the margin of the cap to the stem, veiling or protecting the gills. This membrane, called the cortina, has given its name to a numerous and important class of mushrooms (the Cortinarias ). It is generally white, soft, slightly spongy, cottony, at times fibrillose or even slightly fibrous, again in texture comparable to the spider's web, and may be even
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MUSHROOM SPORES AND MYCELIUM.
MUSHROOM SPORES AND MYCELIUM.
The spore is the reproductive organ of the mushroom. It differs from the seed of the flowering plant in being destitute of an apparent embryo. A seed contains a plantlet which develops as such. A spore is a minute cell containing a nucleus or living germ, the reproductive cell germ called by some authors the germinating granule. This in turn throws out a highly elongated process consisting of a series of thread-like cells branching longitudinally and laterally, at length bifurcating and anastomo
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MYCELIUM.
MYCELIUM.
De Leveille has thus defined mycelium: "Filaments at first simple, then more or less complicated, resulting from the vegetation of the spores and serving as roots to the mushroom." The mycelium of mushrooms or the mushroom spawn is usually white, but is also found yellow, and even red. It is distinguished by some writers as nematoid, fibrous, hymenoid, scleroid or tuberculous, and malacoid. The nematoid mycelium is the most common. Creeping along on the surface of the earth, penetrating it to a
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ETYMOLOGY OF THE WORD "MUSHROOM."
ETYMOLOGY OF THE WORD "MUSHROOM."
Various opinions have been offered as to the derivation of the word "mushroom." According to Hay, it probably had its origin in a combination of the two Welsh words maes , a field, and rhum , a knob, which by gradual corruption have become mushroom . Some writers on the other hand regard it as a corruption of mousseron , a name specifically applied by the French to those mushrooms which are found growing in mossy places. But it seems to be of older usage than such a derivation would imply, and t
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FOOD VALUE OF MUSHROOMS.
FOOD VALUE OF MUSHROOMS.
Rollrausch and Siegel, who claim to have made exhaustive investigations into the food values of mushrooms, state that "many species deserve to be placed beside meat as sources of nitrogenous nutriment," and their analysis, if correct, fully bears out the statement. They find in 100 parts of dried Morchella esculenta 35.18 per cent. of protein; in Helvella esculenta , 26.31 per cent. of protein, from 46 to 49 per cent. of potassium salts and phosphoric acid, 2.3 per cent. of fatty matter, and a c
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CAUTIONARY SUGGESTIONS.
CAUTIONARY SUGGESTIONS.
Before collecting for the table mushrooms found growing in the woods or fields, it would be well for inexperienced persons to consult carefully some work on the subject in which the characteristics of edible and poisonous varieties are described and illustrated. Considering that an opinion seems to prevail that the discoloration of the silver spoon or small white onions when brought into contact with mushrooms during the culinary process is an infallible test of the poisonous species, I quote fr
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Preserving and Cooking Mushrooms.
Preserving and Cooking Mushrooms.
In Europe several species of mushrooms are preserved by boiling and afterwards placing them in earthern jars or tubs filled with water, which is renewed from time to time. This simple and economical method of keeping mushrooms affords the people considerable provision. With regard to the preparation of fresh mushrooms for table use, Dr. Roques, an eminent writer on fungi, gives the following excellent suggestions: "After selecting good mushrooms, remove the skin or epidermis, cutting away the gi
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Receipts.
Receipts.
Broiled procerus. —Remove the scales and stalks from the agarics, and broil lightly on both sides over a clear fire for a few minutes; arrange them on a dish over freshly made, well-buttered toast; sprinkle with pepper and salt and put a small piece of butter on each; set before a brisk fire to melt the butter, and serve quickly. Bacon toasted over mushrooms improves the flavor and saves the butter. Agarics delicately stewed. —Remove the stalks and scales from the young half-grown agarics, and t
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AUTHORITIES CONSULTED.
AUTHORITIES CONSULTED.
Fries, Saccardo, Kromholtz, Cooke and Berkeley, M. C. Cooke, Peck, Stevenson, Badham, Gillet, Boyer, Gibson, Roques, Hussey, Hay, Bel, Paulet and Leveille, Constantin and Dufour, Barla, Roze, W. G. Smith, Vittadini. AUTHOR OF FOOD PRODUCTS, ETC. Published in Serial Form— No. 2 —Price, 50c. per number. WASHINGTON, D. C.: A. R. Taylor, Publisher, 238 Mass. Ave. N.E. 1897. The ten mushrooms illustrated in the five plates contained in the first number of this series belong to the family Hymenomycete
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ASCOMYCETES.
ASCOMYCETES.
Fruit, consisting of sporidia, mostly definite, contained in asci, springing from a naked or enclosed stratum of fructifying cells, and forming a hymenium.—Cooke and Berkeley. Prof. J. de Seyne states that the three elements which form the hymenium in the families Hymenomycetes and Gasteromycetes are (1) the normal basidium, that is, the fruitful club-shaped cell which supports the naked spores, (2) the cystidium or sterile cell, an aborted or atrophied basidium, and (3) the paraphyses, hypertro
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DISCOMYCETES.
DISCOMYCETES.
The name Discomycetes, "disk-like fungi," does not give an accurate idea of the distinguishing characteristics of this sub-family, the discoid form only belonging to the plants of one of its groups. In the Discomyceteæ the hymenium is superior, that is, disposed upon the upper or exterior surface of the mushroom cap. The sporidia are produced in membraneous asci, usually four or eight, or some multiple of that number, in each ascus; Cooke says "rarely four, most commonly eight." The sporidia are
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RECEIPTS FOR COOKING.
RECEIPTS FOR COOKING.
Stuffed Morels. —Choose the freshest and lightest colored Morels, open the stalk at the base, fill with minced veal and bread-crumbs, secure the ends of the stalk and place between thin slices of bacon. The Morel should not be gathered immediately after heavy rains, as it becomes insipid with much moisture. The flavor is said to grow stronger in drying. Escalloped Mushrooms. —(From Mr. Frank Caywood, Fredericktown, Ohio, November 14, 1893.) Season as directed in the usual methods for mushrooms a
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DIRECTIONS FOR PREPARING THE COMPOST FOR THE BEDS.
DIRECTIONS FOR PREPARING THE COMPOST FOR THE BEDS.
Procure not less than a cartload of clean, fresh stable manure. Place it under cover, to protect it from rain and drain water, mix well and heap up the whole mass into a mound three feet high then beat the mound firmly down to prevent undue heating. Repeat this operation every other day until its rank smell is gone, taking care that on each turning the outside dry manure is placed in the centre of the mound. By this means the stable odor is dissipated while its heating properties are equally dis
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Compost for Mushroom Beds.
Compost for Mushroom Beds.
Sawdust has been used in England for mushroom beds, after having been used for stable bedding, with very good results. It has also been used successfully in the District of Columbia. In fact, the very large models of cultivated mushrooms exhibited by the Division of Microscopy of the Department of Agriculture at the World's Fair in Chicago were moulded from mushrooms which were grown on the writer's premises, in a composition of sawdust stable bedding, combined with about one-fourth garden mould
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Mushroom Culture in Canada.
Mushroom Culture in Canada.
A Canadian correspondent informs me that he, with others, has been very successful in growing mushrooms in the open air during the summer months in Canada, and gives the following directions for preparing the beds in the colder latitudes: Place under a shed such amount of clean stable manure as may be required for the beds, turning it over and over until all free ammonia has escaped and the tendency of undue fermentation and evolution of high temperature has greatly modified. To effect this, it
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Cultivation of Mushrooms in Japan.
Cultivation of Mushrooms in Japan.
The Japanese are very successful in cultivating a mushroom which they call "Shiitake" or "Lepiota shiitake." China also produces the same mushroom, but of an inferior quality. The Chinese therefore prefer the mushroom cultivated by the Japanese, which they import from Japan in large quantities. It is cultivated on a variety of trees, but is said to grow best on the "Shiinoki," a species of oak (Quercus cuspidata). There are three varieties of "Shiitake," the spring, summer, and autumn crops diff
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Manufacture of Spawn.
Manufacture of Spawn.
As many tons of artificial spawn are yearly imported into this country, it would seem that the manufacture of spawn in the United States might prove a profitable form of investment. For commercial purposes the English method of making the spawn into bricks has some advantages over the French "flake" process. Its compact and uniform shape makes the brick more convenient for storage and general handling, and greatly facilitates its transportation to long distances. Brick spawn is made in the follo
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APPENDIX B.
APPENDIX B.
Through the courtesy of Mr. Hollis Webster, Secretary of the Boston Mycological Club, the following list of mushrooms, which have been collected and eaten by members of that club during the past year, has been supplied to me: AUTHOR OF FOOD PRODUCTS, ETC. Published in Serial Form— No. 3 —Price, 50c. per number. WASHINGTON, D. C.: A. R. Taylor, Publisher, 238 Mass. Ave. N.E. 1897. Plate E. Plate E illustrates various forms and positions of the annulus or ring characteristic of certain species of
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ANALYTICAL TABLE.
ANALYTICAL TABLE.
The following compendious analytical table showing prominent characteristics of the leading genera and subgenera of the order Agaricini, according to Fries, Worthington Smith, and other botanists, which appears in Cooke's Hand Book, revised edition, will be found helpful to the collector in determining the genus to which a specimen may belong. Order Agaricini In the Friesian classification which, with modifications, has prevailed for many years among mycologists, the genus Agaricus included in i
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POLYPOREI.
POLYPOREI.
Hymenium lining the cavity of tubes or pores which are sometimes broken up into teeth or concentric plates.—Berkeley's Outlines. The plants of this second primary group or order of the family Hymenomycetes exhibit a greater dissimilarity of form and texture than do those of the Agaricini. Some of its genera consist almost wholly of coriaceous or woody plants. A few contain fleshy ones. Some of the species have a distinct stem, while others are stemless. With regard to the receptacle in the plant
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RECIPES FOR COOKING MUSHROOMS.
RECIPES FOR COOKING MUSHROOMS.
To Pot Mushrooms. —The small open mushrooms suit best for potting. Trim and rub them; put into a stewpan a quart of mushrooms, 3 ounces of butter, 2 teaspoonfuls of salt, and half a teaspoonful of cayenne and mace, mixed, and stew for ten or fifteen minutes, or till the mushrooms are tender; take them carefully out and drain them perfectly on a sloping dish, and when cold press them into small pots and pour clarified butter over them, in which state they will keep for a week or two. Writing-pape
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LIST OF THE GENERA OF HYMENOMYCETES.
LIST OF THE GENERA OF HYMENOMYCETES.
The following list of the genera of Hymenomycetes, summarized from Kellerman's Synopsis of Saccardo's Sylloge Fungorum, will be found useful for reference:...
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BREFIELD'S CLASSIFICATION OF FUNGI.
BREFIELD'S CLASSIFICATION OF FUNGI.
A system of classification of fungi which is receiving attention from mycologists is that recently presented by the distinguished German author Dr. Oscar Brefield. Dr. Brefield's exhaustive investigations into the life-history of fungi in general have been such as to entitle his views to consideration, although the system presents some inconsistencies which may prevent its adoption in its entirety. According to the Brefield system, as summarized by his colleague Dr. Von Tavel, Fungi are divided
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CONIOMYCETES AND HYPHOMYCETES.
CONIOMYCETES AND HYPHOMYCETES.
In the original classification of Fries two of the primary divisions of the sporiferous Fungi were termed, respectively, Coniomycetes and Hyphomycetes . This arrangement was accepted by Berkeley, the term Coniomycetes being applied to all fungi in which the naked spores, appearing like an impalpable dust, were the principal feature of the plant, and the term Hyphomycetes to fungi in which the threads or hyphæ bearing the spores were the most conspicuous feature. Coniomycetes, as broadly interpre
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HYPHOMYCETES.
HYPHOMYCETES.
With regard to the Hyphomycetes, Cooke takes the ground that in their internal relations to each other, and their external relations to the remaining orders, the Hyphomycetes are undoubtedly a well-defined and natural group, and should have place as such in a systematic work. It is a large order, containing nearly 5,000 species, mostly parasitic on dead animals and vegetable matter. The spores, termed conidia, are free, as in Hymenomycetes. The species are microscopic in size, and the hyphæ are
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PHYCOMYCETES OR PHYSOMYCETES.
PHYCOMYCETES OR PHYSOMYCETES.
As originally defined by Berkeley, this group was composed chiefly of the old typical Mucors and their allies, and was then termed Physomycetes. In the newer system of classification its original definition has been extended so as to include a number of groups somewhat dissimilar in their habits and characteristics, but "united under the conservating bond of a dimorphic reproduction," and the name has been changed to Phycomycetes. As at present recognized "the Phycomycetes are characterized by a
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BIBLIOGRAPHY.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
Saccardo, P. A. "Sylloge Sphæropsidearum et Melanconiearum," in Sylloge Fungorum. Vol. iii. Imp. 8vo. Padua, 1884. L. A. Crie. Recherches sur les Pyrenomycetes inferieurs du group de Depazées. 8vo. Paris, 1878. J. C. Corda. Icones Fungorum. Fol. 6 vol. Prague, 1837-'54. Bonorden. Zur Kenntniss der Coniomyceten u. Cryptomyceten. 4to. Halle, 1860. M. C. Cooke. The Hyphomycetous Fungi of the United States. 8vo. 1877. P. A. Saccardo. Sylloge Fungorum. Vol. iv.—"Hyphomyceteæ." Padua, 1886. De Toni, J
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APPENDIX.
APPENDIX.
Although some writers apply the terms spore, sporidia, sporophore, sporules, and conidia somewhat indiscriminately to all spore bodies, in order to avoid confusion, it is now recommended by the best authorities that certain distinctive limitations should be adhered to in the use of these terms. Saccardo, in defining the terms which he employs, accepts the term spores as applicable exclusively to the naked spores supported on basidia, as found in the Basidiomyceteæ. The term sporidia he limits to
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GASTEROMYCETES.
GASTEROMYCETES.
Hymenium more or less permanently concealed, consisting in most cases of closely packed cells of which the fertile ones (the basidia) bear naked spores on distinct spicules, exposed only by the rupture or decay of the investing coat or peridium. Berkeley's Outlines. This family has been subjected to numerous revisions since the days of Fries, when its structural characteristics were not so well understood as at present. Montagne and Berkeley are credited with being the first to show the true str
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MYXOMYCETES OR MYXOGASTERS.—"Slime Fungi."
MYXOMYCETES OR MYXOGASTERS.—"Slime Fungi."
In their early history the Myxomycetes, or "slime moulds," were classed with the gasteromycetal fungi, and by Fries grouped as a sub-order of the Gasteromycetes, under the name Myxogasters. From this connection they were severed in 1833 by Link, who, recognizing certain distinctive features which entitled them to consideration as an entirely separate group, ranked the Myxogasters, as a separate order, under the title Myxomycetes , Slime moulds . De Bary, in a monograph on the subject written som
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BIBLIOGRAPHY.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
E. Fischer, etc. "Gasteromycetæ," Saccardo, Sylloge Fungorum . Vol. vii, part i. Padua, 1888. Chas. H. Peck. "United States species of Lycoperdon." Geo. Massee. "Monograph of the British Gasteromycetes." Annals of Botany, Nov., 1889. "Monograph of the Genus Lycoperdon" in Journal Royal Micro. Soc. London, 1887. C. Bambeke. Morphologie du Phallus impudicus. Gand, 1889. A. P. Morgan. "North American Geasters" in American Naturalist . Roy. 8vo. 1887. L. and C. Tulasne. "Essai d'une Monographie des
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APPENDIX.
APPENDIX.
As Chief of the Division of Microscopy, U. S. Department of Agriculture, the author prepared for the World's Columbian Exposition at Chicago a collection of models of edible and poisonous mushrooms, for which a medal and diploma were there awarded. The same collection, which now belongs to the Museum of the Department of Agriculture, was exhibited at the Atlanta Cotton Exposition in 1895, where a diploma was again awarded for it, and has since been exhibited at the exposition of 1897 in Nashvill
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Muscarin.[A]
Muscarin.[A]
[A] The earliest account of the separation of the poisonous principles of the mushrooms of the genus Amanita dates back to the experiments of Apoiger in 1851. Harnack's researches were published in 1876 and those of Huseman in 1882. To the eminent German chemists Schmiedeberg and Koppe is due the credit of isolating the active poisonous principle of the Fly mushroom ( muscarin ). These authors published in 1869 a series of interesting experiments made with muscarin , having relation to its effec
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Phallin.
Phallin.
The toxic alkaloid of Amanita phalloides Fries (Amanita bulbosa ) was examined by Boudier, who named it " bulbosin ," and by Oré, who named it " phalloidin ," but their examinations, it is claimed, proved little beyond the fact that it seemed to be in the nature of an alkaloid, identical neither with muscarin nor helvellic acid. Oré affirmed that the phalloidin of the Amanita phalloides was very nearly related to, and perhaps identical with, strychnine. From this view Kobert and others dissent.
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The Poisonous Alkaloid of Gyromitra esculenta Fries (Helvella esculenta Pers.)
The Poisonous Alkaloid of Gyromitra esculenta Fries (Helvella esculenta Pers.)
Prof. Kobert writes of a number of cases of poisoning in the Baltic provinces of Russia by the mushroom Helvella esculenta Persoon, sometimes called the Lorchel. It should be here stated that the Helvella esculenta of Persoon is the Gyromitra esculenta of Fries. This mushroom is described as edible and placed in the edible lists by Dr. M. C. Cooke, Prof. Peck, and other distinguished mycologists, who have tested it and found it edible when perfectly fresh. The poisonous principle of this mushroo
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Poisonous and Deleterious Mushrooms of the Lactar, Russula, and Boletus Groups.
Poisonous and Deleterious Mushrooms of the Lactar, Russula, and Boletus Groups.
Lactarius torminosus Fries contains in its milky juice an acrid resin which causes inflammation of the stomach and of the alimentary canal. When parboiled and the first water removed, it has been eaten without injurious effects. Lactarius plumbeus Bull., Lactarius uvidus Fries, Lactarius turpis Weinn., and Lactarius pyrogalus Bull., all acrid mushrooms, according to Kobert, are similarly poisonous. Of the "Erdschieber" (Lactarius vellereus ) and the "Pfefferling" (Lactarius piperatus Scop.) Kobe
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Recent Instances of Mushroom Poisoning.
Recent Instances of Mushroom Poisoning.
About a year ago a physician in Vineland, New Jersey, furnished the following in regard to his personal experience of the effects of mushroom poisoning: "My wife, daughter, and self selected, according to an article in the Encyclopedia Britannica, what we thought were a nice lot of mushrooms, cooked them in milk, and ate them for dinner with relish. In a few hours we were vomiting, laughing, and staggering about the house. We could not control ourselves from the elbows to the finger tips, nor ou
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BIBLIOGRAPHY—FUNGI.
BIBLIOGRAPHY—FUNGI.
North America . Berkeley, M. J. "Fungi of Arctic Expedition, 1875-'76." Linn. Journ., xvii. 1880. —— "Decades of Fungi," viii-x, in Hook. Journ., vol. iv. London. 1845. —— "Decades of Fungi," xii-xiv. "Ohio Fungi," Hook. Journ., vol. vi. London. 1847. —— "Decades of Fungi," xxi-xxii. "North and South Carolina." Hook. Journ., vol. i. 1849. Berkeley, M. J., and Curtis, M. A. "North American Fungi" in Grevillea , vols. i-iv. London. 1871-'75. Bessey, C. E. The Erysiphei. (Monograph.) Michigan. Curt
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BIBLIOGRAPHY.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
Toxicology of Mushrooms. Boudier, Emile. Gazette des hop. Paris. 1846. —— Mushrooms Toxicologically Considered. Paris. 1869. T. Husemann und A. Husemann. "Handb. der Toxicologie." Berlin. 1862. Letellier and Speneux. "Experiences nouvelles sur les Champignons vénenéux etc." Paris. 1866. McIlvaine, Chas. Article on Amanita poisonings, Therapeutic Mag. Philadelphia, 1893. Schmiedeberg and Koppe. "Das Muscarin Das Giftige Alkaloid des Fliegenpilzes." Leipzig. Verlag von F. C. W. Vogel. 1869. Kobert
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