The North American species of Pholiota, by Alexander H. Smith and L. R. Hesler.

4

The North American Species of Pholiota

this character, Singer and Smith (1946b) proposed the genus Kuehneromyces for certain species in which the character was readily observable
under ordinary magnifications with a compound microscope. More recently Singer (1957) proposed Pachylepyrium for certain species in which
the spores are exceptionally heavily pigmented, smooth, and relatively
thick-walled. Pleurocystidia were said to be lacking.
Despite the comment by Fries, upon which Quelet apparently acted,
students of agarics since 1874 for the most part maintained Pholiota and
Flarnmula as separate genera. Among these were some of the leading
agaricologists of Europe: Ricken (1915), Rea (1922) and Lange (1935 -40). In North America Peck (1897) (1908), Atkinson (1900), Murrill
(who used Karsten's name Gymnopilhs in place of Flammula), Kauffman
(1918, 1926), and Overholts (1927) accepted the same generic concepts.
In 1953 Kuhner and Romagnesi followed Quelet (1886) in using the
name Dryophila in that author's original concept.
Singer and Smith (1946, p. 264) expressed the opinion that the
generic differences between Pholiota and Flammila in the sense of modern
authors were too slight to justify maintaining both. In this respect they
reiterated Quelet's (1886) opinion, but Singer (1951) sought to divide
the group along lines other than originally indicated by Fries. Tlhis was
a constructive move anti has been followed by such recent autliors as
Moser (1955). Singer (1963) has given us the most detailed analysis of
the whole group to date and it is the one which we have used as a point
of departure for our study. Singer's work is of such importance that we
include here the outline of his classification:
Pholiota
Subgenus Hcmipholiota, type P. destruens.
Sect. 1. Hemipholiota
2. Sordidae, type Dryophila sordida
3. Albocrenulatae, type P. albocrenulata
4. Myxannmlatae, type P. nameko
Subgenus Pholiota, type P. squarrosa
5. Pholiota
6. Adiposac, type P. adiposa
7. Subflammantes, type P. subflammans
Subgenus Flammula, type Flammula flavida
8. Flammula
9. Lubricae, type P. lubrica
subsect. Polychrominae, type P. polychroa
Spumosinae, type P. spumosa
10. Sericellac, type Agaricus scambus
11. Privignae, type P. privigna
12. Glutinigerae, type P. glutinigera