1922] Fruiting Stage of Tuckahoe, Pachyma Cocos 133 



of the laboratory several diminutive fruit bodies formed on its sur- 

 face within a week. 



The sclerotia which were buried were examined after two weeks 

 and were found to have surrounded themselves with a loose weft of 

 mycelium (fig. 1) which was whitish at first and became at length 

 tawny. Two weeks later these sclerotia were largely decayed. 



Several unsuccessful attempts were later made to bring into fruit- 

 ing specimens which had dried out from exposure in the laboratory. 

 These experiments, w^hich have resulted in the development of sporo- 

 phores on five tuckahoes,^ indicate that fruiting is conditional upon at 

 least three factors, (1) fresh specimens, (2) saturation with water, 

 and (3) the presence of light. 



In efforts to artificially culture this organism, a bit of tissue from 

 near the center of a large sclerotium was transferred with aseptic 

 precautions on May 2 to a potato plug. A loose white mycelium 

 developed and on May 23rd a poroid sporophore somewhat abnormal 

 in appearance but with mature normal spores entirely similar in 

 size, shape and appearance to those in nature, had formed.^ 



The sporophores are resupinate, plate 35, and although pure 

 white at first they become with age slightly tinged with brown. The 

 subiculum is thin. The pores are large and angular to irregularly 

 sinuous and 2-3 mm. deep, plate 36. The hymenium is at first rather 

 tough and cartilaginous but becomes papery on drying. There is 

 no sterile margin nor are cystidia present. The basidia are blunt, 

 club-shaped, 20-25/u. in length and 6-8/a in width and are crowned 

 with four rather slender sterigmata, fig. 9. The basidiospores are 

 w^hite in mass, asymetricaliy cylindrical, smooth, and 7-8 x 3.5/x, Fig. 

 10. 



^ After receiving this paper for publication, I suggested to Dr. Wolf that he make still 

 further cultures so as to place the proof of relationship of the Porta to the tuckahoe beyond 

 all doubt. He accordingly made six other cultures on potato plugs sterilized in glass tubes 

 and inoculated with tissue taken from the center of three large tuckahoes. The lat- 

 ter were collected during the last week in April and had been left to lie in the laboratory 

 until June 22nd, the date on which the cultures were made. By July 17th each of the six 

 cultures had formed fruiting bodies of the Poria type and one of these is shown in plate 

 35. Dr. Wolf has also produced another fruiting body on the surface of a tuckahoe since 

 writing this paper. A sclerotium was soaked and buried in sand for three weeks, during 

 which time it enveloped itself with a loose, white weft. It was then dug up and put into a 

 jnoist chamber. Within ten days it had formed on its surface the most perfect fruiting body 

 that he has obtained This makes a total of six tuckahoes that have produced sporophores 

 on their surface. The plant had been buried to test the possibility of production of a stalked 

 sporophore. The result confirmed the ]>revious conclusion that light is a necessary stimulus 

 to production of a fruit body. Just as this paper was going to press there was published by 

 Elliott an article on "Some Characters of the Southern Tuckahoe" (Mycologia 14: 222. 

 1922). His snecimens were not attached to pine but supposedly to sumac roots in two 

 esses. Eflorts to secure a fruiting stage were not successful, and the identity of his plant 

 with Wolf's species must remain in doubt. — W. O. Cokbr. 



