''Calocybe indica'', commonly known as the milky white mushroom, is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

edible mushroom Edible mushrooms are the fleshy fruit bodies of numerous species of macrofungi (fungi that bear fruiting structures large enough to be seen with the naked eye). Edibility may be defined by criteria including the absence of poisonous effect ...

native to India. The sturdy all-white mushrooms appear in summer after rainfall in fields and on road verges. Traditionally eaten in West Bengal, it is being grown commercially in several Indian states and other tropical countries.

Taxonomy

''Calocybe indica'' was formally described in 1974, from material collected in

Kolkata Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...

. The authors—botanists R.P. Purkayastha and Aindrila Chandra—had noted it to be a popular mushroom in markets in

West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...

. They placed it in the section ''Calocybe'' of the genus ''Calocybe'', noting that it appeared closely related to and was similar morphologically to ''

Calocybe gambosa ''Calocybe gambosa'', commonly known as St. George's mushroom, is an edible mushroom that grows mainly in fields, grass verges and roadsides. Deriving its common name from when it first appears in the UK, namely on St George's Day (23 April). I ...

'', from which it differed by having slightly larger oval spores, and a stouter mushroom. Botanist A. S. Krishnamoorthy found it growing in

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...

in the mid 1990s, and its commercial production was overhauled and improved.

Description

The robust mushroom is all-white in colour and has a firm consistency. Its cap is across, convex initially before flattening out with age. The cuticle (skin) can be easily peeled off the cap. The crowded gills are white but gradually develop into brown with age, and the cylindrical stem is high with no ring nor volva. It has a subbulbous base, being wide at the apex (top), in the middle and wide at the base. The mushroom does not change colour on cutting or bruising, though old dried specimens have a buff colour. The flesh has a mild flavour that has been described as oily, and a faint smell reminiscent of radishes. The

spore print 300px, Making a spore print of the mushroom ''Volvariella volvacea'' shown in composite: (photo lower half) mushroom cap laid on white and dark paper; (photo upper half) cap removed after 24 hours showing warm orange ("tussock") color spore print. ...

is white, and the oval spores measure 5.9–6.8 μm long by 4.2–5.1 μm wide.

Distribution, habitat and ecology

''Calocybe indica'' grows in grasslands, fields and road verges in Tamil Nadu and

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; Literal translation, lit. 'Land of Kings') is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the List of states and union territories of ...

, generally on a

substrate Substrate may refer to: Physical layers *Substrate (biology), the natural environment in which an organism lives, or the surface or medium on which an organism grows or is attached ** Substrate (aquatic environment), the earthy material that exi ...

that is rich in organic material. The mushrooms appear between May and August after spells of rainfall. The fungus is

saprophytic Saprotrophic nutrition or lysotrophic nutrition is a process of chemoheterotrophic extracellular digestion involved in the processing of decayed (dead or waste) organic matter. It occurs in saprotrophs, and is most often associated with fungi ...

, though it has been reported to form

ectomycorrhizal An ectomycorrhiza (from Greek ἐκτός ', "outside", μύκης ', "fungus", and ῥίζα ', "root"; ectomycorrhizas or ectomycorrhizae, abbreviated EcM) is a form of symbiotic relationship that occurs between a fungal symbiont, or mycobion ...

relationships with the roots of the coconut tree (''

Cocos nucifera The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or the f ...

''), palmyra palm (''

Borassus flabellifer ''Borassus flabellifer'', commonly known as doub palm, palmyra palm, tala or tal palm, toddy palm, lontar palm, wine palm, or ice apple, is a fan palm native to South Asia (especially in Bangladesh, East India, and South India) and Southeast As ...

''), tamarind (''

Tamarindus indica Tamarind (''Tamarindus indica'') is a leguminous tree bearing edible fruit that is indigenous to tropical Africa and naturalized in Asia. The genus ''Tamarindus'' is monotypic, meaning that it contains only this species. It belongs to the f ...

'') and yellow poinciana (''

Peltophorum pterocarpum ''Peltophorum pterocarpum'' (commonly known as copperpod, yellow-flamboyant, yellow flametree, yellow poinciana or yellow-flame) is a species of tree in the family Fabaceae, native to tropical areas from Indo-China to northern Australia. It produ ...

'').

Cultivation

''Calocybe indica'' is cultivated commercially in southern India and becoming more popular in China, Malaysia, and Singapore; it can be grown in hot humid (60% to 70%) countries with a temperature range of 25 to 35 °C year-round.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q44140422 Fungi described in 1974 Fungi of India Lyophyllaceae Edible fungi Fungus species