These form a very large group, mostly growing on decaying plants. They are typically disc-shaped or cup-shaped, and when young are closed or nearly so, opening when mature. They vary in size from minute species to large fleshy ones, 3 to 4 inches in diameter. They are generally small, thin, and tough. They grow on twigs, leaves, dead wood, or on the ground. Many are stemless. They are both solitary and densely clustered. The color varies from pale brown to a dark gray, resembling, when moist, india-rubber cloth, and then, again, there are many of brilliant hues—red and orange. Some are erect, some are split down at the side like the ear of a hare. The Cup fungi are found in August and September, growing near ditches, and by the roadside where there is moisture. The ear-shaped Pezizas somewhat resemble the Jew’s ear, and the beginner might easily confound them. This latter fungus belongs to the third class of membrane fungi (Hymenomycetes), and it is included in the descriptions of fungi.
THE MORELS or MORCHELLAS = the honey-combed fungi.
The collector during the months of April and May will enjoy a new experience when he first finds a fungus of a bright brown color, deeply pitted, spongy looking, cone-shaped or nearly round; its head supported on an erect, white stem. He will probably find it on a grassy hillside or along a running brook under some forest trees. He has perhaps seen its picture and at once exclaims, “my first Morel.” He will notice its peculiar honey-combed depression, and then cutting it open will find both the head and the stem hollow. Where are the spores? There are no gills as in the Agarics, nor are they concealed in a covering (peridium), as in the Puff-balls, but they are contained in delicate sacs on the cap. The exterior surface of the cap is the spore-bearing portion, and the spores are developed in their sacs, but only seen under a microscope.
HELVELLA = the yellowish mushroom.
This genus may be readily recognized by the form of the cap, which is lobed and irregularly
waved and drooping, often attached to the stem. They grow on the ground in the woods, and sometimes on rotten wood. The genus comprises the largest of the Disc fungi known, some species weighing over a pound. Cicero mentions the Helvellas as a favorite dish of the Romans.
THE TRUFFLE = delicacy.
It will be well to finish this section with the mention of the Truffle. It may yet be found in the United States, but hitherto its place of growth has been on the continent of Europe, and especially in France, where it forms an article of commerce, and is highly prized as food. It is subterranean, and requires for its discovery a higher sense of smell than man possesses. It is generally found by the hog and the dog, who are trained to help the truffle hunters. There are some species in our country that resemble it, and grow underneath the ground. One, found in the Southern States, called Rhizopogon, grows in sandy soil. This species, however, does not belong to Class II., but to Class I., the Gasteromycetes, or Stomach fungi. It is not likely that the beginner will find this mushroom, so no description will be given.
[1.] In the young plant it forms the framework of the gills.