Var. leioceph´alus B. and Br. (Gr—smooth; Gr—head, from its smooth pileus). Pileus hygrophanous, rugged, smooth except at the margin, where it is fibrillose, pallid as is the stem, whose apex is mealy.
Densely cespitose, much smaller than the common form, but apparently a mere variety, though a striking one from its smooth but very rugged disk. On old stumps. Stevenson.
New York, Peck, 23d Rep.; West Virginia, West Philadelphia, Bartram’s Creek, Haddonfield, N.J., September to November. McIlvaine.
Quantities of var. leiocephalus grow in the West Virginia forests on stumps and on the ground from decaying roots. 1½ in. is the limit of its width. Its frequent and dense clusters, its tenderness and delicacy of flavor make it a favorite.
H. aggrega´tum Pk.—aggrego, to grow together. Densely cespitose. Pileus thin, convex or subcampanulate, grayish-white, obscurely spotted with appressed brownish fibrils. Lamellæ subdistant, rounded behind, nearly free, at first whitish, then brown or blackish-brown with a whitish edge. Stem rather long, hollow, somewhat woolly or fibrillose, white. Spores brown, elliptical, 8×4–5µ.
Pileus about 1 in. broad. Stem 2–3 in. long, 1.5–2 lines thick.
At the base of trees and stumps in woods. Alcove. September.
The cespitose habit and obscurely spotted grayish-white pileus are marked features of this species. From H. silvestre the species may be distinguished by its smaller size, adnexed or nearly free lamellæ which have no rosy tint, and by its very cespitose mode of growth. Peck, 46th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.
Mt. Gretna, Pa., about trees and stumps. September to November, 1898–1899. McIlvaine. Not reported elsewhere.
The caps are oyster-color. Amateurs accustomed to the gayer colors of the autumnal Hypholomas will not suspect this of belonging to the genus, until the color of the spores is obtained.