20 TIMBER EOT CAUSED BY LENZITES SEPIARIA. 



this fungus. The question of the possible parasitism of Hve trees 

 has been tested by makino; inocidations into Uvin<2; trees of longleaf 

 pine. These were made by boring holes into the tre»s with a small 

 bit, then placing in the holes pieces of rotted wood containing active 

 mycelium, and plugging the holes to prevent too rapid drying out. 

 Similar inoculations were made in freshly felled trees to determine 

 the time necessary for the development of sporophores. Absolutely 

 no results could be detected from six inoculations made in the living 

 trees, thus seeming to prove that Lenzites sepiaria is a true saprophyte 

 and incapable of attacking hving wood. Hedgcock (|| No. 1632) 

 collected a specimen wliich seems to show it to be very weakly 

 parasitic. (Fig. 1.) This conclusion is borne out by the results of the 

 inocidations in felled trees. In less than five months from the time 

 of inoculation fruiting bodies were found gro's\dng upon the ends of 

 the plugs used to keep the material from drying out. The plugs were 

 about 3 inches in length and the mycelium had grown through the 

 wood for that distance, completely rotting it for a portion of the way, 

 and then forming fruiting bodies on the outside. (PI. Ill, fig. 2.) 

 The plugs were made of green wood taken from the tree in which the 

 inoculations were made. The wood of the tree itself was apparently 

 not attacked, this being probably due to the earher death of the 

 wood of the plug. Moreover, railroad ties, the time of cutting of 

 which was exactly known, had sporophores of tliis fungus within 

 five months of the time when cut from the green trees. Wlien one 

 considers that some little time must elapse before the wood of the 

 perfectly green tree is dead, he may gain an idea of the rapidity with 

 wdiich this fungus destroys timber under favorable conditions. Tliis 

 is especially true of railroad ties and timbers wliich are placed under 

 very favorable conditions for the growth of fungi, and which in 

 Texas usually last only about 12 to 24 months in use. 



THE DECAYED WOOD. 



EXTERNAL APPEARANCE OF TIMBER. 



A timber which is affected, but wliich as yet has no sporophores 

 upon it, has a very characteristic appearance. The entls are generally 

 the parts first to become affected. Here will be seen on dry ties a 

 blackened area of a more or less irregular outline. This may be only 

 an inch or two across, or may be larger, but it is never found extending 

 into the heartwood. To the experienced person it is a sure indication 

 that there is within an affectecl spot and that sporophores will soon 

 be formed somewhere upon the discolored area. The appearance is 

 as if the wood beneath were water soaked. Tlio wood has been so 

 decomposed that the smallest quantity of water makes it look wet. 



214 



