Fio. y. Sectional view of Morchella bispora Sorokiu. ^^ Two- Spared Morel J" 



Edible. 



Cap free from the stem to the top, somowLiit resembliu;,' that of 

 M. seinillherd, but bhnit at its summit iustoad of conical, the outward 

 surface deeply pitted, inner surface smooth and barren. A characteristic 

 of this species which distinguishes it from others of the same genus is 

 found in the number of its sporidia, spores as seen in the ascus or spore 

 sack. In the plants of the genus Morchella the spore sacks, with one or 

 two exceptions, contain eight spores. 



In the species M. hispora the spore sacks contain but two spores and 

 these are much larger than the sporidia of those which contain eight. 

 This characteristic, however, can only be determined by the aid of the 

 microscope. 



Cooke figures a specimen taken from those published by Sorokin in 

 Thumens Exsiccata, and calls it a variety of Morchella Bohemica Kromb. 

 He says that it is not unusual to find M. Bohemica with two or four 

 sporidia in some of the asci, mixed with others containing more, some 

 specimens being entirely tetrasporus, and some, as the variety Jnspora, 

 usually containing but two sporidia. Cooke contends that M. bispora is 

 simply a bisporous form of Morchella Bohemica^ and calls it M. Bohemica 

 var. hispora. It is not as common as other species. 



Fig. 9 represents asci of M. bispora showing the two spores in each 



ascus. 



Fig. 4. Morchella conica. ''Conical MoreV 



Ediblk. 



Cap conical or oblong-conical, margin adhering to the stem, the prom- 

 inent ridges longitudinal and irregularly bisected with shorter ones ; the 

 whole plant hollow throughout ; color pale tan or ochraceous yellow, 

 growing dingy and darker with age ; stem white ; spores elliptical. 



This species is quite plentiful in some localities ; the flavor is like that 

 of M. esculenta. 



Fig. 5. Sectional view of M. conica. 



Fig. 10. Ascus, sporidia and paraphyses. 



Fig. 6. Morchella deliciosa Fries. ''Delicious Morel.'" 



Cap nearly cylindrical, blunt at the top, and usually much longer than 

 the stem, adnate. Plant hollow throughout. Stem white. Spores 

 elliptical. 



Fig. 7. Sectional view of M. deliciosa. 



Fig. 11. Ascus, sporidia, and paraphyses. 



The Morchella deliciosa is highly esteemed as an esculent wherever 

 eaten. Split open and stuflied wdth bread crumbs seasoned with pepper, 

 salt, and butter and a ])inch of thyme or onion, steamed in a hot oven, and 

 served with butter sauce, this mushroom makes a very savory dish. 



Note. — Small specimens have been selected for illustration in this plate 

 in order to utilize as much as possible the plate space. 



