hroom_."
Figs. 5 to 9 Lepiota naucinoides Peck. (Agaricus naucinus Fries)
"_Smooth White Lepiota_."
T. Taylor, del.]

PLATE XI.

FIGS. 1 to 4.--=Ag. (Lepiota) procerus= Scop. (=Lepiota procera=).
"_Parasol Mushroom_."

EDIBLE.

Cap at first ovate, then expanded, showing distinct umbo, cuticle thick,
torn into evanescent scales; gills remote from the stem, free, white, or
yellowish-white; stem long, slender, variegated with brownish scales,
hollow or slightly stuffed, bulbous at the base, and bearing a
well-defined thickish ring, which in the mature plant is movable. Spores
white, elliptical. The color of the cap varies from a light tan or
ochraceous yellow to a dark reddish-brown. The surface showing beneath
the lacerated cuticle is of a lighter hue than the cuticle, and is silky
and fibrillose, giving the cap a somewhat shaded or spotted appearance.
The flesh is dry, soft and thready, white. Taste and odor pleasant.

Cap from 3 to 5 inches broad; stem from 5 to 10 inches high.

This species is commonly found in pastures and in open grassy places;
sometimes in open woods near cultivated fields, usually solitary or in
very small clusters. It is a favorite among mycophagists. Lepiota
_racodes_ closely resembles Lepiota _procera_, and by some botanists the
two are regarded as forms of the same species. In L. _racodes_ the
pileus is at first globose, expanded, and finally depressed in the
centre; the cuticle is thin and broken into persistent scales; the whole
plant smaller than L. procera. Flesh slightly reddish when bruised.
Edible. There is also a white variety (_puellaris_) with a floccose
squamose cap.

PLATE XI.

FIGS. 5 to 9.--=Ag. (Lepiota) naucinus= Fries (=Lepiota naucinoides=
Peck). "_Smooth White Lepiota_."

EDIBLE.

Cap at first sub-globose, then curved, the surface smooth and satiny
when dry, creamy white; gills close and slightly rounded at the inner
extremity towards the stem, free from the stem, white; stem white,
smooth, hollow, and bulbous at the base; ring thick, distinct, movable,
white. The gills, soon after gathering, become suffused with a faint
pinkish or fleshy tint. The spores are white, sub-elliptical. Specimens
occur in which there is a slight granulation in the centre of the cap,
but they are rare. The variety _squamosa_ shows the surface of the cap,
somewhat broken into thick scales.

L. _naucinoides_ is a very clean and at