Morchella esculenta.
In its natural state, the Morel is found growing in orchards, damp woods, and in moist pastures. Its height is about four inches. It is distinguished by its white, cylindrical, hollow, or solid, smooth stem; its cap is of a pale-brown or gray color, nearly spherical, hollow, adheres to the stem by its base, and is deeply pitted over its entire surface. It is in perfection early in the season; but should not be gathered soon after rain, or while wet with dew. If gathered when dry, it may be preserved for several months.
The Morel.
Use.—The Morels are used, like the Truffle, as an ingredient to heighten the flavor of ragouts, gravies, and other rich dishes. They are used either fresh or in a dried state.
Cultivation.—Its cultivation, if ever attempted, has been carried on to a very limited extent. Of its capability of submitting to culture, there can be little doubt. If the spawn were collected from its natural habitats in June, and planted in beds differently formed, but approximating as nearly as possible to its natural conditions, a proper mode of cultivation would assuredly be in time arrived at. Persoon remarks that "it prefers a chalky or argillaceous soil to one of a sandy nature; and that it not unfrequently springs up where charcoal has been burned, or where cinders have been thrown."
"The great value of the Morel—which is one of the most expensive luxuries furnished by the Italian warehouses, and which is by no means met with in the same abundance as some others of the Fungi—deserves to be better known than it is at present." The genus comprises a very few species, and they are all edible.