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kopsservik

Page history last edited by PBworks 17 years, 5 months ago

kopsservik (Pleurotus pulmonarius)

Pleurotus pulmonarius: The Summer Oyster

by Michael Kuo

The separation of Pleurotus pulmonarius from the infamous "true" oyster mushroom, Pleurotus ostreatus, is based on very good evidence that covers the three "species concepts" most commonly applied to fungi. In the laboratory, Pleurotus pulmonarius cannot "mate" with the other species in the oyster complex, so it is a good biological species. It also represents a fairly distinct morphological species, since it is paler (and frequently smaller) than the brownish Pleurotus ostreatus and appears to develop more of a stem, more of the time. DNA evidence supports Pleurotus pulmonarius as a phylogenetic species and, to top it all off, there is an ecological difference: it appears in warmer weather than Pleurotus ostreatus, which favors cold-weather conditions.

None of this matters, of course, if you just want some good oyster mushrooms for dinner. Pleurotus pulmonarius is every bit as good as Pleurotus ostreatus, and its appearance in the summer extends the "oyster season" in most areas of the continent.

Description:

Ecology: Saprobic; growing in shelf-like clusters on dead and living wood of hardwoods; causing a white rot; beginning in summer (unlike Pleurotus ostreatus) but continuing into fall and winter; widely distributed in North America.

Cap: 2-12 cm; convex, becoming flat or somewhat depressed; lung-shaped (hence its Latin name) to semicircular, or nearly circular if growing on the tops of logs; somewhat greasy when young and fresh; fairly smooth; whitish to beige or pale tan, usually without dark brown colorations; the margin inrolled when young, later wavy and, unlike Pleurotus ostreatus, very finely lined.

Gills: Running down the stem; close or nearly distant; whitish.

Stem: Sometimes absent or rudimentary, but often present; 1-7 cm long and up to 1.5 cm thick; eccentric or lateral--or central.

Flesh: Thick; white.

Taste: Mild; odor distinctive but hard to describe.

Spore Print: Whitish, grayish or lilac.

Microscopic Features: Spores 8-14 x 2.5-5 µ; smooth; cylindric to long-elliptical. Compare with measurements for the epitype collection of Pleurotus ostreatus, rather than measurements quoted in most field guides.