Pleurotus parsonsiae, also known as velvet oyster mushroom, is a species of edible fungus in the genus Pleurotus, endemic to New Zealand.[1]
| Pleurotus parsonsiae | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Division: | Basidiomycota |
| Class: | Agaricomycetes |
| Order: | Agaricales |
| Family: | Pleurotaceae |
| Genus: | Pleurotus |
| Species: | P. parsonsiae
|
| Binomial name | |
| Pleurotus parsonsiae G. Stev., 1964
| |
| Synonyms | |
|
Pleurotus salignus sensu Colenso; fide Segedin & Pennycook (2001) | |
Pleurotus parsonsiae | |
|---|---|
 | Gills on hymenium |
 | Cap is offset or depressed |
 | Hymenium is decurrent |
 | Stipe is bare |
 | Spore print is white |
 | Ecology is saprotrophic or parasitic |
 | Edibility is edible |
Description
editGeneral
edit- The cap grows from 7 to about 12 cm, creamy fawn, darker when wet or grey yellow, darker towards margin, paler towards stipe, drying ochraceous, orbicular with margin, down-rolled at first and later splitting. It is dry, smooth, matt to finely fibrillose, hence the "velvet" common name.
- The flesh is creamy white.
- The stem is short, sometimes absent, from 8 by 8 mm., to 1 by1.5 cm.
- The gills are decurrent to deeply decurrent, creamy, moderately crowded, thin, deep, with margins becoming lacerate.
- The spore print is white, becoming creamy.[1]
Microscopic characteristics
edit- The spores are around 9-11 μm by 4-4.5 μm, non-amyloid, thin-walled.[1]
Distribution, habitat & ecology
editThis mushroom is saprobic on dead wood, preferring Sophora sp., Leptospermum scoparium, Eucalyptus sp., andCordyline australis. It is endemic to New Zealand.[1] The phylogenetic research of Pleurotus genus has classified P. parsonsiae as incertae sedis with regards to clades and intersterility groups.[2]
Human impact
editThis mushroom is edible and it can be cultivated. Grow kits and cultures are sold in New Zealand as an alternative to illegal invasive species of Pleurotus.[3][4]
References
edit- ^ a b c d "VIRTUAL MYCOTA: NZ Fungi Identification: Pleurotus parsonsiae". virtualmycota.landcareresearch.co.nz. Retrieved 2023-02-26.
- ^ Segedin, BP; Buchanan, PK; Wilkie, JP (1995). "Studies in the agaricales of New Zealand: New species, new records and renamed species of Pleurotus (Pleurotaceae)". Australian Systematic Botany. 8 (3): 453–482. doi:10.1071/SB9950453.
- ^ "Species of Mushrooms Cultivated in NZ". MycoLogic. Retrieved 2023-02-26.
- ^ "The Importance of Keeping it Native » Matariki Mushrooms". Matariki Mushrooms. 2021-04-29. Retrieved 2023-02-26.