yfazriOM aâ& eaâ/j.
A garicus o s tr e a tu s . O y st e r MU'SHROOM.
AGARICUS hin. Gen. PL C ryptogamia Fungi.
Fungus horizontalis, fubtus lamellofus.
Fail Syn. Gen. i. F ungi*
AGARICUS oßreatus fubftipitatus, fafciculato-irnbrlcatus, pileo cinereö öbovatö, margine involute^
lamejlis albidis decurrentibus, baß fubanaftamofantibus.
AGARICUS oßreatus, ’Jacquin» Fl. Außr. t. 104.
Menfibus Decembri et Januarii e truncis arborum pre-
fertim falicis nobifeum exerefeunt Fungi
icône annexa illuftrati ; plurimi plerumque
fimul' erumpunt, intbrieatim congefti, diu
manent et demum exficcantur.
STIPES ; etfi pileus trunco arboris- utplurimum bafi
fuâ âdne&ïtur nihilominus in quibufdam fpe-
ciminibus ftipes feu pars ftipitis magis lu-
culenter apparet, lamellis deeurreixtibus- tee-
PILEUS magnitudiner et forma varîus, ficut in icône, i
in junioribus convexus, fcevis, murinus, •
cærulefcens, margine integro, involuto, in ■
fenefeentibus planiufculus • feu parum conca- ;
vus, fufeus, bafi in inferioribus tomento ni- i
veo obdu&a caro> albiffima,. crafîa, fubdul- i
LAMELLÆ pri’müm albæ, demum ex rufb-cinereæ,
plurimæ^ tenues, inæq.uales, a lineis duabus
ad fèx latæ, decurrentes, bafî anaftomofantes,
exfuccæ.
\ In the months of December and January the Fungi
illustrated’ by the annexed figure, grow with
^ us principally out of the trunks of willow
\ trees; they ufually come forth in cluttersr
heap’d one on another, remain a confiderable
\ time and finally wither,
\ STALK : although the cap is for the moft part con-
• nefited to the trunk of the tree by its bafe,
; yet in fome fpecimens the ftalk or part of a
ft a lk more evidently appears,- cover’d with the
gills which run down it.
: UAP variable both in fize and fhape as is reprefented-
on the plate, in the young ones convex,-
fmooth, moufe coloured, blueifh, the edge
intire, rolled in ; in the older ones flattifh •
or a little hollow,. and brown ; the bafe in the
lower ones cover’d with a white kind of
down ; ftefh very white, thick,- and fweetifh
to the tafte.
GILLS at firft white, afterwards of a reddifh- afh colour;
numerous, thin, unequal, from two
lines to fix in breadth, decurrent, uniting fo
as to form a kind of network at bottom,
juicelefs.
Confidenng the fe e and'Angularity of tins M u i r » « , and that is by no means uncommon it is matter
v l V t_ v e<£*ped; thl raS « ° f ?ur EnSli<h Botanifts viz. that at makes its appearance hter m the feafon than moft others : in D5 eocneme rbeearf oann d Januarmy wayh ein tXhne^eedS
FFrifd^s 3;8. MMr .“ Dn T u * a™ tlK b°c “ S °f th? 0W Willow Trees- in the neighhourhood of Saint Georges- ickson has obferved it on the Elm, in Saint james’s-Park, and Ja c k in from whom we S ? -
row the name o f oftreatus9 defenbes rt as growing out of the Walnut.
As this fpecies and another with a footy ftalk which we propofe hereafter to figure, are almoft the only ones
that are found on trees fo late in the year, it cannot eafily be miftaken, tho’ like moft o f the ftmily it is given mfport-
in general it grows m ckfters of three, fix, or more of different fizes, placed one over another b-arinv a dif-
an refemblance to oyfters, when young and pei-fedt they are of a moufe colour with a bloom on them like
that of a plum, the edge is rolled in, the gills are white, decurrent, and beautifully anaftamofe at bottom but
it is not in every (pecimen that this diftinguifhing charafter is obfervable, as it grows old the pileus turns up Vvid
uwermoft fig. on the plate) the gills become of a brownifh colour, and frequently much wave“ and “L whole
both fide“ h' ’ the two imvermoft figures on the plate reprefent the Fungus in its young ftate and fh e l
T o t h e fm e l l i t i s ( l i g h t l y f r a g r a n t , t o t h e t a f t e m i ld , b u t in c h e w in g t o u g h .