THE AMERICAN BOTANIST 79 



many as at first. Thus is another practice of the cultivator 

 placed on a foundation of scientific fact. It has long- been 

 known that soil may be rendered fertile by heating, but the 

 reason has only just come to light. 



Parasitic Plants. — According to Dr. D. T. McDougal, 

 nearly twenty-five hund'red species of parasitic seed-plants are 

 known and if it were possible to discover all the species that are 

 partial parasites feeding on the roots of other plants below 

 ground it is certain that the total would he much larger. 

 Among the changes that take place in a plant when it becomes 

 even a partial parasite are a lack of differentiation of the 

 tissues even in the seed and embryo, a lessened development of 

 the shoot and root, a reduction of the leaf surface and dimin- 

 ished production of chlorophyll. If with the parasitic plants 

 we include those which form partnerships with various fungi, 

 and so are not entirely independent, the group would comprise 

 about half of all the flowering plants in the world. 



Fungi Named Free. — Most wanderers through the au- 

 tumn woods constantly come upon strange forms of fungi 

 clustered on decaying logs, projecting shelf-like from dead and 

 decayed trees or springing from the old leaves on the forest 

 floor. Most of these make good specimens by simply drying 

 in some sheltered place and now that flowers are fast disap- 

 pearing, form good subjects for further study. It is seldom 

 that the novice in such studies can find a scientist willing to 

 carefully identify ex'en the commonest species, but such a for- 

 tuitous condition exists with reference to this group. All that 

 is necessary is to collect several good specimens of each kind, 

 dry them and after retaining a good specimen of each, send the 

 rest to C. G. Lloyd. 309 West Court Street, Cincinnati. Give 

 each specimen a number and Mr. Lloyd will report the name of 

 each by return mail. Do not send toadstools; only woody 

 fungi. 



