=R. vires’cens= Fr.—_viresco_, to be green. (Plate XLIV, fig. 6, p. 184.) =Pileus= green, compactly fleshy, globose then expanded, at length depressed, often unequal, always dry, not furnished with a pellicle, wherefore the _flocculose cuticle is broken up into patches or warts_, margin straight, obtuse, _even_. =Flesh= white, not very compact. =Stem= solid, internally spongy, firm, _somewhat rivulose_, white. =Gills= free, somewhat crowded, sometimes equal, sometimes forked, with a few shorter ones intermixed, _white_. _Fries._ Taste mild; good, raw. =Spores= scarcely echinulate, almost globular, 6µ _W.G.S._ =Spores= 8–10µ _Massee_; 6–7.6µ _Peck_. =Cap= round when young, very hard, then convex or becoming dished, sometimes repand. It is without a separable skin, covered with various sized areas of mouldy looking patches which are at times distinctly cracked. The color varies from a bright bluish-green to grayish-green, such shades remind one of mouldy cheese or the shades of Roquefort; again the color may vary in shades of light leather brown, occasionally the caps are almost white, opaque in each shade of color. Flesh crisp, brittle, thick, white, mild, good raw. Gills and stem as described. R. virescens is common in the United States but not generally plentiful. It is a solitary grower, usually but few are found in a patch. Striking in appearance when its green colors are present, and always clean looking and inviting. It sometimes attains the size of 5 in. across. It is a hot weather Russula and rarely appears before the latter part of June, then after rains. To eat, it should be in a healthy, fresh condition. All Russulæ impart a stale flavor if any part of gills or cap is wilting, drying or decaying. It requires forty minutes' slow stewing, or it can be dressed raw as a salad. Roasted or fried crisp in a hot buttered pan it is at its best. It should be well salted. =R. lep´ida= Fr.—_lepidus_, neat, elegant. =Pileus= 3 in. broad, _blood-red-rose_, becoming pale, whitish especially at the disk, somewhat equally fleshy, convex then expanded, scarcely depressed, obtuse, opaque, unpolished, _with a silky appearance, at length often cracked scaly_, margin spreading, obtuse, without striæ. =Stem= as much as 3 in. long, often 1 in. thick, _even, white or rose-color_. =Gills= rounded behind, rather thick, somewhat crowded, often forked, connected by veins, white, often red at the edge. Taste mild; wholly compact and firm, but the flesh is cheesy, not somewhat clotted. The gills are often red at the edge, chiefly toward the margin, on account of the margin of the pileus being continuous with the gills. _Fries._ =Spores= 8–10×6–8µ _Syll._ Frequent. July to October, in mixed woods. A common and variable species in size and color, but the cap is always some shade of rose-red or lake. The flesh is compact and cheesy. The gills sometimes edged with pink as they near the margin. Taste mild.