Student's Hand-book of Mushrooms of America, Edible and Poisonous Part 4

Fig. 5. Spores black.

AGARICINI.

LEUCOSPORI (SPORES WHITE, OR YELLOWISH.)

Genus _Marasmius_ Fries.--Tough dry shrivelling fungi--not putrescent, reviving when moistened; veil none. Stem cartilaginous or h.o.r.n.y. Gills tough, rather distant, edge acute and entire. M. C. Cooke.

A characteristic of the species of this genus is their tendency to wither with drought and revive with moisture. This biological characteristic is of great importance in determining the true Marasmii.

The plants are usually small and of little substance.

Cooke divides the Marasmii into three tribes, and these again into several subdivisions. In the division Scortei of this genus are cla.s.sed three species which are described in the works of most of the Continental writers; the Marasmius oreades, which has recognized value as an esculent, Marasmius urens and Marasmius peronatus, which have the reputation of being acrid and unwholesome.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Plate III.

MARASMIUS OREADES FR. (EDIBLE) The Fairy Ring Mushroom.

Report of Microscopist, U. S. Department of Agriculture 1893 L. K. after Gillet.

AVIL. CO. LITH. PHILA.]

PLATE III.

=Marasmius oreades= Fries. "_Fairy Ring Mushroom_."

EDIBLE.

Cap fleshy, convex at first, then nearly plane, pale yellowish red, or tawny red when young, fading to yellow or buff as the plant matures, slightly umbonate, flesh white; gills broad, wide apart, rounded or deeply notched at the inner extremity, slightly attached to or at length free from the stem, unequal in length, whitish or creamy yellow in color; stem slender, solid and tough, whitish, generally one to two inches in length and one-fourth of an inch in thickness, showing a whitish down, easily removed, not strigose or villose, as in the Marasmius urens. Spores white.

This species is usually found in open gra.s.sy places, sometimes in rings, or in parts of rings, often in cl.u.s.ters, and writers generally agree as to its agreeable taste and odor. When properly cooked its toughness disappears.

Prof. Peck describes two mushrooms which are somewhat similar in appearance to the "_Fairy Ring_," and which might be taken for it by careless observers, viz., the Naucoria semi-orbicularis, sometimes growing in company with it, and the _Collybia dryophila_, a wood variety which is sometimes found in open places.

The first of these may be distinguished from the _oreades_, by the rusty brown color of the gills, its smooth stem and rusty colored spores. In the second the gills are much narrower and the stem is very smooth and hollow.

The _Marasmius urens_ as described by European authors has a pale buff cap, not umbonate but flat, and at length depressed in the centre, from one to two inches across. The gills are unequal, free, very crowded; cream color, becoming brownish. The stem is solid and fibrous, densely covered with white down at the base. It is very acrid to the taste. In habit of growth it is subcaespitose; sometimes found growing in company with the M. oreades.

Prof. Peck says of _M. urens_ that he has not yet seen an American specimen which he could refer to that species with satisfaction. Our experience, so far, is the same as that of Prof. Peck.

_Marasmius peronatus_ has a reddish buff cap, with crowded thin gills, creamy, turning to reddish brown; the stem solid and fibrous, with yellowish filaments at the base. It is acrid in taste and is usually found among fallen leaves in woods.

EXPLANATION OF PLATE III.

In Plate III, Fig. 1 represents an immature plant; Fig. 2, cap expanding with growth; Fig. 3, cap further expanded and slightly umbonate; Fig. 4, mature specimen, cap plane or fully expanded, margin irregular and smooth, stem equal, smooth and ringless; Fig. 5, section showing gills broad, free, ventricose, unequal, and flesh white; Fig. 6, spores white.

APPENDIX A.

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 gills, and in some cases the stem, which is usually of not so fine a texture.

"It is important to collect for use only young and well-preserved specimens, because a mushroom of excellent quality may, nevertheless, when overmature or near its decline, become dangerous for food. It then acts as does every other food substance which incipient decomposition has rendered acrid, irritating and indigestible. It is, moreover, rarely the case that mushrooms in their decline are not changed by the presence of larvae."

In Geneva a very lucrative trade is carried on in the exportation of the "_Edible Boletus_," which is preserved for use in various ways, the simplest of which consists in cutting the caps in slices and stringing them, after which they are placed on hurdles in the shade to dry. They may also be dried in a stove or oven, but the former method is preferable, as the mushroom then retains more of its flavor or perfume.

When the slices are perfectly dried they are put into sacks and suspended in a dry, airy place. Sometimes before the mushrooms are sliced they are plunged into boiling water for an instant, which treatment is said to preserve them from the ravages of insects. Several kinds of mushrooms are preserved in the following manner: After they have been properly washed and cleansed, they are boiled in salted water and afterwards wiped dry. They are then placed in layers, in jars, sprinkled with salt and pepper, and covered with pure olive oil or vinegar. _Lactarius deliciosus_, _Cantharellus cibarius_, _Morch.e.l.las_, _Clavarias_, etc., are thus preserved. Before using the dried mushrooms they are soaked in tepid water for some time and afterwards prepared as if fresh, with the usual seasoning.

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-b.u.t.tered toast; sprinkle with pepper and salt and put a small piece of b.u.t.ter on each; set before a brisk fire to melt the b.u.t.ter, and serve quickly. Bacon toasted over mushrooms improves the flavor and saves the b.u.t.ter.

_Agarics delicately stewed._--Remove the stalks and scales from the young half-grown agarics, and throw each one as you do so into a basin of fresh water slightly acidulated with the juice of a lemon or a little good vinegar. When all are prepared, remove them from the water and put them in a stewpan with a very small piece of fresh b.u.t.ter. Sprinkle with pepper and salt and add a little lemon juice; cover up closely and stew for half an hour; then add a spoonful of flour with sufficient cream or cream and milk, till the whole has the thickness of cream. Season to taste, and stew again until the agarics are perfectly tender. Remove all the b.u.t.ter from the surface and serve in a hot dish garnished with slices of lemon. A little mace or nutmeg or catsup may be added, but some think that spice spoils the flavor.

_Cottager's procerus pie._--Cut fresh agarics in small pieces; pepper, salt, and place them on small shreds of bacon, in the bottom of a pie dish; then put in a layer of mashed potatoes, and so fill the dish, layer by layer, with a cover of mashed potatoes for the crust. Bake well for half an hour and brown before a quick fire.

_A la provencale._--Steep for two hours in some salt, pepper, and a little garlic; then toss them into a small stewpan over a brisk fire with parsley chopped and a little lemon juice.

_Agaric catsup._--Place the agarics of as large a size as you can procure, layer by layer, in a deep pan, sprinkling each layer as it is put in with a little salt. Then next day stir them several times well so as to mash and extract their juice. On the third day strain off the liquor, measure and boil for ten minutes, and then to every pint of liquor add half an ounce of black pepper, a quarter of an ounce of bruised ginger root, a blade of mace, a clove or two, and a teaspoonful of mustard seed. Boil again for half an hour; put in two or three bay leaves and set aside until quite cold. Pa.s.s through a strainer and bottle; cork well and dip salt on the gills. Lay them top downwards on a gridiron over a moderate fire for five or six minutes at the most.

_To stew mushrooms._--Trim and rub clean half a pint of large b.u.t.ton mushrooms. Put into a stewpan 2 ounces of b.u.t.ter; shake it over a fire until thoroughly melted; put in the mushrooms, a teaspoonful of salt, half as much pepper, and a blade of mace pounded; stew until the mushrooms are tender, then serve on a hot dish. This is usually a breakfast dish.

_Mushrooms a la creme._--Trim and rub half a pint of b.u.t.ton mushrooms; dissolve in a stewpan 2 ounces of b.u.t.ter rolled in flour; put in the mushrooms, a bunch of parsley, a teaspoonful of salt, half a teaspoonful each of white pepper and of powdered sugar; shake the pan for ten minutes; then beat up the yolks of two eggs with two tablespoonfuls of cream, and add by degrees to the mushrooms; in two or three minutes you can serve them in sauce.

_Mushrooms on toast._--Put a pint of mushrooms into a stewpan with two ounces of b.u.t.ter rolled in flour; add a teaspoonful of salt, half a teaspoonful of white pepper, a blade of powdered mace, and a half a teaspoonful of grated lemon; stew until the b.u.t.ter is all absorbed; then serve on toast as soon as the mushrooms are tender.

APPENDIX B.

GLOSSARY OF TERMS USED IN DESCRIBING MUSHROOMS.

_Abortive_, imperfectly developed.

_Acaulescent_, _acaulous_, having a very short stem or none.

_Acetabuliform_, cup-shaped.

_Acicular_, needle-shaped.

_Aculeate_, slender pointed.

_Ac.u.minate_, terminating in a point.

_Acute_, sharp pointed.

_Adnate_, gills firmly attached to the stem.