342 
roots and bases of the trunks of such trees were quite healthy. Itis 
of interest to note that a section of beech-wood shown in the 
Forestry Section of the Glasgow Exhibition, which is said to have 
been cut from a tree killed by Coccus, has its bark thickly covered 
with the fructification stage of Nectria. 
ther instances of dead trees occurred where the roots had died 
first. A black fungus (Melogramma spiniferum, De Not.) was 
present in this case, and was seen breaking through the bark of 
the exposed parts of the roots and the base of the trunk. 
It has been frequently noted that such trees die suddenly, soon 
after the leaves expand, or during the summer. This may be 
accounted for by the fungus, which has been present for a long 
period, and has affected the health of the trees, at last becoming so 
abundant as to prevent the efficient working of the conducting 
tissues at a time when they ought to be working at full pressure. 
The fructification of the black fungus referred to above, though 
larger than the Nectria, is also small and not very conspicuous. 
A conspicuous fungus was present on a large number of dead 
and dying trees and was often seen accompanying the Nectria. The 
fructifications are greyish, fan-shaped, and often two or three inches 
across. It has been identified as Polyporus adustus, Fr., and though 
it may be purely saprophytic and not harmful to living trees, it has 
been suspected of having parasitic tendencies. (Massee, Diseases of 
Cultivated Plants and Trees, p. 387.) 
Trees attacked or killed by the Nectria or the Melogramma are a 
serious source of infection to other trees, and ought to be removed 
and burnt at once, and not be left lying where they fall as is too 
often the case. 
The fact of certain trees dying as they stand probably accounts 
for the hardness of the wood and bark, which has been noted by 
some people, and has been attributed to the action of the Coccus. 
_ The Weymouth Pine, Pinus Strobus, is subject to attack by an 
nsect, i covering, and thus 
resembles the Beech Coccus. This has led to the belief that a 
connection exists between the disease on the two trees. This, 
however, cannot be the case, for the Weymouth Pine insect is 
known to be a species of Chermes (C. strobi) and thus belongs to a 
different group of insects from the Beech Coccus. 
