Edible and poisonous fungi.

Date:
1945
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Edible and poisonous fungi. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    18/66 (page 10)
    EDIBLE VARIETIES OF FUNGI COMMON OR FIELD MUSHROOM (Psalliota campestris) The Common Mushroom or Field Mushroom may vary con- siderably in appearance. The typical form found in meadows has a white, rather silky cap. In the “ button”’ stage it is rounded like a small ball but later, as the cap expands, it becomes less rounded and finally nearly flat. “The skin is dry and hangs slightly as a ragged edge round the margin of the cap; it peels easily. The stem is also white, rather short, smooth and solid, with a thin white ring attached towards the middle of the stem or nearer the top. The ring stands out only in the very young, freshly opened, stage ; later it hangs down, and may very soon disappear, especially when the fungus is handled. In the typical wild form the stalk tapers at the bottom where it enters the soil, but in cultivated forms and in some of the varieties it is very often thickened below. The gills are thin and crowded, and free from the stem. In the button stage they are whitish, then as the cap opens become a distinct delicate pink colour, and later dark purplish- brown or nearly black. ‘The spores are very dark brown. The flesh of the cap is white and soft, often changing to reddish or dirty brown when cut or broken. Varieties of the Field Mushroom occur in which the cap is scaly, the scales being often not pure white but reddish to dark brown. The most characteristic features are the pinkish gills in the young stage, later changing to dark brown, and the thin, rather perishable ring on the stem. The Field Mushroom is common in meadows and on downs where animals have grazed, from early summer to autumn, and some- times occurs in great abundance. It also often appears in gardens where horse manure has been applied to the soil. Several varieties are cultivated for market, and the cultivated forms as) a rule havea thicker and more solid cap than the typical wild plant, whose flavour is unexcelled.