xviii Report of the Botanist. 



treatment and pruning of fruit and sliade trees from the nursery to 

 the Held, and a careful forest system for the protection of yOung 

 and old timber during lumbering operations, a^ well as protection 

 f roni fire, and the avoidance of dense shade which shuts out the liglit 

 from the vouno: trees, must be resorted to if it is desired to lessen 

 the great losses now resulting from the action of wound parasites. 



In the study of the edible and poisonous species of mushrooms a 

 great amount of information is being gathered. Several hundred 

 photographs of various species have been made, and a critical study 

 of the chai-acteristics of the species which should enable us to better 

 understand our fungus flora. The eai'lier descriptions of European 

 as well as of American forms were in many cases so meagre as to 

 lead to great confusion. The result is that many species have been 

 renamed, some of them several times, and in a great many cases 

 species have been wrongly determined. 



This difficultv will exist for some time to come, and the condi- 

 tions can only be improved by a thorough study of our plants. This 

 must be made when the plants are in the fresh condition, and close 

 attention must be given to minute structural characters which were 

 overlooked by the majority of the older mycologists, and also are 

 overlooked by many to-day. 



Tiie problem of the fleshy fungi is different from that of most 

 other groups of plants, where the plants may be dried as soon as 

 collected and then are snitable for study ox the toxonomic characters 

 years later. Many of the fleshy fungi di-y poorlj-, and hence lose 

 important characters. Some of these characters preserve well in 

 alcohol, while otiier characters are lost. Balletins 138 and 168 have 

 demonstrated (piite clearly that the camera is a most valual)le means 

 of recording certain speciflc and generic characters of these plants. 

 These photographic records, combined with a study in the fresh 

 condition of characters of form, color and minute structure, together 

 ^vith well dried specimens make the best records of those characters 

 whicli it is desiral)le to have, though some forms will need to be 

 preserved in alcohol and when possible duplicates of those which 

 are dried might well be preserved also in alcohol. 



To carefully collect and preserve these plants, therefore, entails 

 vastly more labor tiian with most other groups and is correspond- 



