TAB. CCCCXXVII, numbered CCCCXXV, 



Fig. 1 and 2. 



PEZIZA cpjspA. 



XHIS specimen Avas sent from near Alcester, by Thomas 

 Purton, Esq. in May, 1810. Being usually found dry, it is 

 crumpled and crowded, so as scarcely to look like a Peziza, 

 but upon being wetted, naturally or otherwise, it reassumes 

 its proper form of a cup. It is of a dark umber brown colour, 

 and smoothish within ; lighter, greyer, and a little rough 

 outside. Grows under the epidermis on Elm, I believe. 



t^ '-^1 <-^^ (^-. t4?* '-^^ 



TAB. CCCCXXVIII. 



PEZIZA poLYMORPiiA. With. 5rc. 



JSOT unusual in Autumn on stumps of Oak, solitary or 

 grouped, laying in damp places. It is tremulous when fresh, 

 pear-shaped when young, of an ochraceous brown a little 

 flecked, forming a concave apex, which dilates to a cup, of a 

 dark brown or black colour as it grpws older; it continues 

 to expand till it protrudes its seed, which it does from a sort 

 of capsule or pores, holding eight seeds each, from which 

 circumstance Hedw ig makes it an Octospora ; it still continues 

 spreading and flattening, its surface becoming more or less 

 wrinkled w hen it is either eaten by insects, rots or dries to a 

 small hard black wrinkled mass, as figured on the small 

 specimen, 



*~^-i t^^ t^-. t^-i t^^ t^i 



TAB. CCCCXXIX. 



RHIZOMORPIIA iMPERiALis. 



In 1806, this parasite was discovered growing in Elm pipes 

 at Weymouth, under rather peculiar circumstances, having 

 completely stopped up the pipes, and prevented the water 

 from passing them. It is altogether rather tough, and is 

 composed of a whitish pith, looking like cotton, and a rather 

 rugged dark brown bark or rind, which is apt to break trans- 

 versely at right angles, and to split longitudinally. It extends 

 to a great length, perhaps an hundred or more feet; Lady 

 M. Markham sent me a moderate sized piece, which measured 

 between thirty and forty feet; it is branched, the branches 

 being very long, irregular, and simple. It appears to differ 

 from any before figured, and in consequence of its magnitude 

 I have called it Imperialis. The Rev. W. Kirby brought me 

 some small pieces very similar to it, in March, 1802, from a 

 water-pipe that had been taken up near Westminster Bridge, 

 but it had scarcely any pith. The lustre of both is nearly 

 silky outside ; the larger branches are of the darkest brown ; 

 the inside of the bark rather lighter than the outside. 



