Common Edible and Poisonous Mushrooms of Southeastern Michigan - Bulletin No. 14

By Alexander H. Smith

Common Edible And Poisonous Mushrooms Of South-eastern Michigan is a portable handy field guide containing a number of helpful pictures. Written by Alexander H. Smith who was an American mycologist known for his extensive contributions to the taxonomy and phylogeny of the higher fungi.
This early work by Alexander H. Smith was first published in 1938 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Read Books Ltd.
• Release date: Apr 10, 2014
• ISBN: 9781473393400

Book preview

Common Edible and Poisonous

Mushrooms of Southeastern

Michigan

By ALEXANDER H. SMITH

University of Michigan

Introduction

Considerable has been written about common edible and poisonous species of mushrooms (poisonous mushrooms are sometimes referred to as toadstools). Unfortunately Kauffman’s Agaricaceae of Michigan, the most complete work on the Michigan fungi is out of print, and there are no popular bulletins available which are based on critical field work in this area. Kauffman’s work is so extensive that if the beginner does happen to have it available, he feels lost in trying to use it, and thus is not likely to make much progress in his study.

This bulletin has been designed for beginners to use in the field and at home rather than in a botanical laboratory. Characters which can be ascertained only by use of a microscope have been omitted. A number of photographs have been included in order to make comparisons of the different species as easy and accurate as possible. For individuals who feel that they have advanced in the study beyond the limits of this work, L. C. C. Krieger’s A popular Guide to the Higher Fungi (Mushrooms) of New York State is recommended. From my personal experiences in the field in this section of Michigan, however, it is clear to me that a smaller work such as this will fill a decided need.

The species discussed in this bulletin have been selected from over one thousand known to occur in the state. This means that less than one tenth of the species are discussed here, and that the collector should learn to search for certain mushrooms rather than try to identify every one he chances to find. Fortunately many of the commonest species are the best for the table, and a collector is almost sure to locate at least one of them on a collecting trip if the season is at all normal. The subject of when and where to look for certain species is outlined on page 18.

The Parts of a Mushroom

In order to facilitate the use of both the keys and descriptions, the more conspicuous parts of both poisonous and edible species will be discussed in some detail here. The body of the mushroom or fruiting body as it will be called hereafter, represents only one phase in the life of the mushroom, the other phase, which is not conspicuous, consists of fine threads (hyphae) which in mass are referred to as the mycelium. The mycelium penetrates through the soil, log or stump depending on the habits of the species to which it belongs. It is the vegetative or food gathering part of the fungus. The food products which are elaborated by the mycelium are later used to form the mushroom or fruiting body. The mycelium lives over from one season to another in the same place, and thus when one has discovered a locality for an edible species, he may expect to find more of it in the same place during following seasons or until the source of food material upon which the mycelium has been living has become exhausted. If one has located an old stump which has produced a crop of Coprinus micaceus he may reasonably expect this fungus to continue fruiting year after year until the stump has decayed due to the action of the fungous mycelium.

The typical fruiting body of an agaric mushroom consists of a cap, stem and gills. As a rule the stem is centrally attached to the cap, but in certain genera it may be eccentric (off center) laterally attached or lacking altogether. In the latter case the fruiting body consists of cap and gills only, and is said to be sessile (attached directly to the substratum). In some species the stem is provided with a ring, some have both a cup and a ring, and some have neither. The grouping of species into genera is based to a large degree on these characters. The cup is formed from the remains of a layer of tissue which at first surrounds the entire fruiting body. The fragments of this layer which adhere to or surround the base of the stem are called a cup regardless of their shape or consistency. In other words the cup is not necessarily truly cup-like. This layer of tissue, of which the fragments at the base of the stem originally formed a part, is called a universal veil because it completely covers the young fruiting body. As the cap expands this layer is broken leaving easily removable scales on the cap in addition to the cup at the base of the stem. In Plate 7 fig. a, the rings of broken tissue at the apex of the bulb represent the cup and the scales on the cap represent the remainder of the universal veil.

The ring is formed from material known as the partial veil. This tissue is called a partial veil because it extends from the margin of the cap to the stem and so does not cover the entire fruiting body. Plate 12, fig. a, illustrates the ring left by the broken partial veil. The ring may be single or double (see text figs. 1 and 2). There are two types of double ring, one in which the ring has two free limbs, and one in which there is a single limb but on its under side are found numerous floccose patches of tissue. The ring is said to be apical if it is near the apex of the stem, superior if it is well above the middle, median if near the middle, and inferior if below the middle. One must be careful not to confuse an inferior ring with a cup. The latter envelopes the base of the stem, the former merely encircles the lower portion of it.

The gills are thin plates (rather thick in Cantharellus, see Plate 6, fig. b), which radiate from near or on the stem to the cap margin, and their presence indicates that the specimens belong in the mushroom family (Agaricacae). In the descriptions of various species the manner in which the gills are or are not attached to the stem is important. If they do not quite reach the stem (see Plate 3) they are said to be free. Sometimes in species classified as having free gills, a very narrow band of gill tissue extends over to the stem. In such cases the gills are said to be attached by a line. If the gills are attached bluntly to the stem they are said to be adnate (see Plate 10, fig. a). If they extend down the stem they are said to be decurrent. (Plate 4,