Common Edible Mushrooms

PURPLE OR PURPLE-BROWN SPORE PRINT
almost always begun to turn pink by the time the veil has broken,
and this gill color, combined with the ring on the stem and the
free gills, makes the identification of it as a species of Agaricus
almost foolproof. The cap is from 2 to 5 inches wide, the stem
1/2 to i inch thick and 2 to 5 inches* long, usually rather short
and squat. The flesh has an excellent flavor and is fairly tender,
although some of the other species of Agaricus are considered
better for eating.
Eminently edible: AGARICUS RODMANI (Rodman's
Mushroom)
This mushroom (Figure 46) resembles Agaricus campestris,
differing from it chiefly in its short, thick stem, its thick flesh and
narrow gills, and the wide or double ring on the stem. The width
of the gills scarcely exceeds one third the thickness of the flesh
of the cap, a characteristic peculiar to this species. Also the wide
or double ring is located below the middle of the stem; no other
species of Agaricus has such a low waistline!
As in A. campestris, the gills do not touch the stem, and the color
of the gills changes from white in very young plants to pink, and
then to a dark purple-brown.
The cap normally expands while still an inch or two beneath
the surface of the soil and is lifted up as the stem elongates, carrying
a clump of earth above it. In size this mushroom resembles
the preceding species, and as far as edibility is concerned the two
could be considered identical. It is a common occupant of cities,
and is found growing on lawns and along the grassy borders of
streets.
GENUS Hypholoma
This genus has (i) violet to dark purple-brown spores, (2) a
thin veil that breaks at the stem, leaving short-lived fragments of
it clinging to the expanding cap, and (3) gills attached to the
stem.
77