899.

VOLVARIA Fr.

This genus takes its name from the volva, which means a wrapper, and
which, as we know from our studies of _Amanita_, entirely envelops the
plant at a young stage. The genus is characterized then by the rosy or
reddish spores, the presence of a volva, and the annulus is wanting. The
stem is easily separable from the pileus at its junction, in this
respect being similar to _Amanita_, _Amanitopsis_, _Lepiota_ and others.
The gills are usually, also, free from the stem. The species grow on
rotting wood, on leaf mould and on richly manured ground, etc. They are
of a very soft texture and usually soon decay.

=Volvaria bombycina= (Pers.) Fr. =Edible.=--The silky volvaria is so
called because of the beautiful silky texture of the surface of the cap.
It is not very common, but is world wide in its distribution, and
occurs on decayed wood of logs, stumps, etc., during late summer and in
autumn. It is usually of a beautiful white color, large, the volva large
and thick, reminding one of a bag, and the stem is ascending when the
plant grows on the side of the trunk, or erect when it grows on the
upper side of a log or stump. The plant is from 8--16 cm. high, the cap
6--20 cm. broad, and the stem 1--1.5 cm. thickness.

The =pileus= is globose, then bell-shaped, and finally convex and
somewhat umbonate, white, according to some becoming somewhat reddish.
The entire surface is silky, and numerous hairs stand out in the form of
soft down, when older the surface becoming more or less scaly, or rarely
becoming smooth at the apex. The flesh is white. The =gills= are
crowded, very broad along the middle, flesh colored, the edge sometimes
ragged. The =spores= are rosy in mass, oval to broadly elliptical, 6--9
x 5--6 mu, smooth. The =stem= tapers from the base to the apex, is solid,
smooth. The =volva= is large and bag-like. The plant is considered
edible by some. Figure 137 is from a plant (No. 3096, C. U. herbarium)
collected on a log of Acer rubrum in Cascadilla woods, Ithaca, on August
10th, 1898.

[Illustration: FIGURE 137.--Volvaria bombycina. Cap, stem and volva
entirely white, gills flesh color (natural size). Copyright.]

=Volvaria speciosa= Fr.--This plant seems to be rare, but it has a wide
distribution in Europe and the United States. It occurs on richly
manured ground, on dung, etc. The plants are 10--20 cm. high, the cap
6--12 cm. broad, and the stem 1--2 cm. in thickness. The entire plant is
whi