St. George’s Mushroom. Fig. 19.
(Agaricus [Tricholoma] gambosus.)62.
The St. George’s Mushroom is fit for any saint in the calendar. It comes up in the spring, near St. George’s Day, when few other species are to be found. It is in every part almost white, or with a slight inclination to ochre; but sometimes the colour is a little fuller. The stem and top are singularly firm, fleshy, and solid, and the latter, in hot weather is inclined to split. It grows in rings, on rich lawns and pastures, and has a strong, fragrant, enticing odour.
It is a little like A. crustuliniformis (fig. 24, Poisonous Sheet), which, however, differs in various ways, principally in discharging brown spores instead of white, as in A. gambosus. The poisonous plant has an odour like the flowers of laurel, and grows in woods in the autumn.
Few species are more substantial and delightful for the table. I (with many others) look upon it with unusual favour, as one of the rarest delicacies of the vegetable kingdom. Like the last, it is absorbent of water, and should be gathered in dry weather. I think it is local, and certainly uncommon near London.
It is sometimes erroneously referred to under the name of A. prunulus.