It should be noted particularly that fungi are liable to alter considerably in appearance on commencing to decay. These particulars refer to mature specimens in prime condition. Because a species is described as non-poisonous, it should not be supposed that it is necessarily good to eat : grown under adverse conditions, or when in a state of decay, it may be highly injurious. Even the table mushroom is dangerous if not fresh. One should take care never to eat any fungus where the slightest doubt exists regarding its nature.
Agaric . Amethyst Agaric.— ¦ Non-poisonous. Cap and stalks amethyst. White stripes on gills (under the caps). No other colour. Found during autumn under leaves. Do not confuse with Purple Agaric, which is very poisonous.
Non-poisonous. Cap, scaly, red buff on brown. Turns pink when broken to pieces. Gills, crimson-brown. Found during autumn among pine trees.
Poisonous.-— Cap is cream or dirty white, with raised scales of orange or even light yellow. Gills, white. Stem has a frill. Found in woods during autumn.
Non-poisonous. Cap is, at first, covered with a tough skin which is chocolate colour. When the cap grows larger, the skin breaks up and appears as scales on creamy white surface. Flesh is reddish brown when broken. Found from late August to October in pine forests.
Very poisonous. and looks it. Cap, scarlet, with white scales. Stem white with a frill. Found in summer and autumn amidst bracken, and in pine forests.
Poisonous. —Cap, flat, and a dirty grey. Gills, coarse and brownish red. Long stem growing out of a cup. Found during summer and autumn in decaying leaves.
Cap, slightly crinkled and purple. Gills, reddish brown. Flesh tinged with blue when broken. Stem, purple and bulbous at foot. Found during autumn in pine forests. Easily mistaken for the Amethyst Agaric or for Blewits.
Non-poisonous. Cap, white with brownish scales. In shape it is flatter than the Parasol Mushroom. Gills white. Stem has a slight waist with a loose frill. Found in autumn in woods.
Non-poisonous. Cap has a slight dome in the centre. Colour, a lead white, fluted at edge. Gills, white. Stem, thin, white, and springs from a cup. Found in autumn in woods and meadows.
Cap has a decided dome in the centre. Colour, buff to cream with numerous brownish scales. Stem has a frill. Below the frill the stem is scaly, a feature which distinguishes it from certain other species. Found in autumn in various places.
Beautiful colouring. Cap is bright green at first, becoming yellowish later. White scales. Gills, purple. Stem has a frill and is roughened, especially below the frill. Found in summer and autumn in damp shady places.
Cap, rusty brown, with numerous light scales. Gills, white. Stem, narrower at top than below, and has a frill. Grows out of a cup. Found in sutumn in woods.
Non-poisonous. Cap is light yellow-orange, or even cream. Shiny. Gills, a dirty white. Stem, lilac colour and not bulbous. Found in meadow-land during autumn. Be certain it is not Purple Agaric, which is very poisonous.
Non-poisonous. In spite of its name, a doubtful delicacy. Cap, brownish and large. Gills, absent; in places the surface is punctured with millions of pinholes, yellowish, flesh, or white. It does not oxidize on being broken. Thick curving stem. Found during late summer and early autumn in woods.
Very poisonous. —
Cap, light yellow, sometimes with scales. Often slimy. Gills, white. Ring on stem. Stem, white; it springs from a cup. Found during autumn.
Horn of Plenty.
Non-poisonous. The shape is that of a funnel with an irregular edge, often split. The colour is a dirty, dark blue-grey outside, and the same but browner, inside. Longitudinal marks on the grey. Found during autumn among trees.
Edible, and not easily confused with any poisonous species. Cup bears a kind of honeycomb network pattern on brown. Stalk, thick and short. Note that the cap and stalk are hollow. Found in spring and early summer on chalky grasslands.
Edible. The British Museum publication on Fungi describes it as follows: ‘Cap, fleshy, silky, white. Stem, stuffed (neither hollow nor solid), furnished with a ring near the middle, white. Gills, free from the stem, at first white, then rose or salmon, at length, vinous-brown or blackish.’’ Found during summer and autumn in warm weather after rain.
Non-poisonous. Cap, like a funnel; ranges from orange to very light yellow. Gills, dirty white. Stem, thick, and colour as above. Found in autumn in woods. There is a poisonous species much resembling this one.
Edible, but likely to be confused with less acceptable species. Cap, white-grey, though sometimes a light yellow. The flesh is white and remains so when broken up. Gills, brownish. Stem, stout, and pos- sessing a frill high up. Found in summer and autumn in meadows.
Non-poisonous. Cap, white with brownish scales. Gills, white always. Stem has a waist with a loose frill. It is white with brown horizontal splashes. Found in summer and autumn among fallen leaves.
Edible. Cap is the shape of half a ball, the flat surface being uppermost. Colour is brownish-white with regular brown scales. Gills, brownish. Flesh changes to a rusty brown when broken. Stem provided with a frill. Found in autumn under oak trees.
Non-poisonous. Cap looks like a half-closed parasol. It is, at first, a dusty yellow-brown, but this coloured skin does not expand when the outer cap grows. Consequently, it is seen later on as a conical scale, only partially covering the cap. The remaining surface is then whitish, and so is the stem. The whole growth turns a blue-black on commencing to decay. Found in September and October in meadows and even gardens.
Non-poisonous. Same as the Agaric War ted, but has no cap at base of stem, and the flesh changes to a rusty brown on being broken.