194 THE TREES OF THE WOOD. 



The early growth of the Beech is an interesting study. 

 About the middle or end of April the wonderful process of ger- 

 mination commences ; the nut cracks through the expansion 

 going on within, and the little radicle appears ; then the hardened 

 involucre, which has served as a protector for the cotyledons, is 

 thrown off, and they are left tightly folded (Plate XIV., Figs. 4 

 and 5). But soon they rise erect, their folds are unwrapped, and 

 in May a curious little plant attracts our attention. Certainly to 

 the uninitiated in this early stage of its existence it looks most 

 unlike our idea of a young Beech, for it bears a decidedly fungoid 

 appearance. The cotyledons are raised above the surface : they 

 are orbicular in shape, and folded together, the green or upper 

 side inwards, the outer being of a greenish white colour. In the 

 next stage of growth we find the cotyledons fully expanded, form- 

 ing two leaf-hke expansions very unlike the usual type ; between 

 them, small and feeble as yet, we see the future tree (Plate XIV., 

 Figs. 6 to 8). In the later specimens, shown in Figs. 9 and 10, 

 the first pair of leaves has appeared; at this stage the young 

 tree is a most attractive little object, as the yellow green of the 

 young leaves contrasts well with the dark shining green of the 

 cotyledons. 



The young seedlings are frequently attacked by the fungoid 

 disease {F/iyfophthora omnivoi'o) known as " damping-off." The 

 subject is most interesting, but it is impossible to do more than 

 glance at it in a limited space. The stem, cotyledons, and leaves 

 become spotted with brown or black patches, and, as the disease 

 is very infectious, it quickly spreads from one seedling to another, 

 and the infected parts shrivel up. It is caused by a fungoid 

 growth in the tissues of the young plant. A section under 

 the microscope shows numerous slender filaments running 

 between the cells : some of these fungus filaments or hyphse, as 

 they are termed, develop the spores known as the conidia. These 

 are so numerous and capable of such rapid germination that every 

 plant in the bed is speedily infected, and also the soil for another 

 season. 



A few varieties of Beech are cultivated in Great Britain. Of 

 these the Purple Beech (7^ s. purpurea) and the Copper Beech 

 i^F. s. cuprea) are much admired for the striking effects they 



