C. gigante´a Sow.—giganteus, of gigantic size. Pileus 6–10 in. across. Flesh rather thin in proportion to the size of the fungus, white, or tinged with tan, glabrous when moist, slightly flocculose when dry; margin involute then spreading, glabrous, rather coarsely grooved. Gills slightly decurrent, broad, very much crowded, branched and connected by veins, whitish then pale tan-color, not separating spontaneously from the hymenophore. Stem 1–2 in. long and nearly the same in thickness, equal, pallid, solid. Spores white, 5×3µ.
In woods, etc.
A very distinct species, very showy, large, subcespitose, entirely whitish tan-color; without close affinities. Stem solid, compact, and firm inside and outside, 2½ in. long, ½ in. thick, equal, even, glabrous. Pileus depressed from the first, then broadly, i. e., plano-infundibuliform, thin but equally fleshy, soft, not flaccid, but easily splitting from the margin toward the center (almost papery and involute when old), upward of a foot broad, often excentric and generally sinuately lobed, moist and adpressedly downy when growing, slightly flocculose and cracked into scales when dry; margin at first very thin, involute, pubescent, soon spreading, glabrous, at length revolute, coarsely furrowed or radiately wrinkled. Gills slightly decurrent, closely crowded, almost 3 lines broad (2–3 times as broad as thickness of flesh of pileus), connected by veins, thin, fragile, straight, but sometimes varying to crisped and anastomosing, whitish then yellowish or tinged with rufous, smell weak. Fries.
This species was placed in Clitocybe in Syst. Myc. and Epicrisis, but in Hym. Europ. Fries removed it to Paxillus in which he is followed by Stevenson. Cooke and Massee continue it in Clitocybe. Dr. Somers found one measuring over 15 inches in diameter. R.K.M.
North Carolina, Schweinitz. Edible, Curtis; Wisconsin, Bundy; California, H. and M.; Nova Scotia, Dr. Somers.
Large quantities of Clitocybe gigantea grow in the West Virginia mountains, and in woods around Philadelphia. July to November.
Its substance is coarse, but of good flavor. It should be chopped fine.
C. max´ima Gärtn and Meyer. (Fl. Wett.)—greatest. (Plate [XXIV], fig. 5, page 82.) Pileus as much as 1 foot broad, becoming pale-tan or whitish, fleshy, compact at the disk, otherwise thin, somewhat flaccid (not capable of being split), broadly funnel-shaped, gibbous with a central umbo, always very dry, the surface becoming silky-even or squamulose; margin involute, pubescent, always even. Flesh white, at length soft. Stem as much as 4 in. long, 1 in. thick, solid, compact, but internally spongy, elastic, attenuated upward, fibrillosestriate, whitish. Gills deeply decurrent, pointed at both ends, somewhat crowded, soft, simple, whitish, not changeable.
The pileus is always very dry because the surface absorbs moisture. Odor weak, pleasant, almost that of A. infundibuliformis. On account of its gigantic stature and color, it has often been interchanged with A. gigantea Sow.; it is in no wise, however, allied to that species, but is so closely allied to A. infundibuliformis that it might be taken for a very luxuriant form of it. Stevenson.
Spores 6×4µ Massee; 5×3µ, W.G.S.