52 SOUTHERN POLYPORES 



varieties; surface very rough, deeply sulcate, tomentose, tawny- 

 brown, becoming rimose and almost black with age; margin 

 rounded or acute, tomentose, ferruginous to tawny-cinnamon, 

 entire, sterile in large specimens; context soft-corky to indurate, 

 ferruginous, 5-10 mm. thick, thinner in small specimens; tubes 

 stratified, white to avellaneous within, becoming ferruginous at 

 maturity and in the older layers, 5 mm. long each season, much 

 shorter in thin specimens, mouths irregular, circular or daedale- 

 oid, often radially elongate, averaging I to a mm., edges fer- 

 ruginous to grayish-umbrinous, glistening when young, rather 

 thin, entire; spores subglobose, smooth, hyaline at maturity, 

 becoming brownish with age, 5-6 X 3-4 ju ; cystidia abundant, 

 short, 25-35 X 4-6 n. 



Common throughout most of the region on living trunks of 

 conifers, causing a very serious heart-rot. The variation in the 

 shape of the hymenophores is exceedingly confusing. 



36. GLOBIFOMES Murrill 



Hymenophore large, encrusted, perennial, epixylous, com- 

 pound; context ferruginous, punky; tubes cylindric, thick-walled, 

 stratose; spores ovoid, smooth, ferruginous. 



i. GLOBIFOMES GRAVEOLENS (Schw.) Murrill 



Hymenophore polycephalous, globose, having the appearance 

 of being thatched, 8-15 cm. in diameter, the center homogeneous, 

 ferruginous, floccose and rigid; pilei very numerous, cespitose- 

 branched, closely imbricate, occupying the periphery of the 

 mass; pileus corky, rigid, conchate, usually plicate, 1-3 X 0.5- 

 0.8 cm.; surface radiately sulcate, slightly zonate, purplish- 

 fuscous, pulverulent to glabrous, slightly resinous in appearance, 

 encrusted, grayish-black with age; margin fulvous, pulverulent, 

 undulate or lobed, subacute, denexed, sterile on the perpendicular 

 portion, which is from 2 to 3 mm. long; context floccose, fer- 

 ruginous, 2-5 mm. thick; tubes 2 mm. long, grayish-umbrinous, 

 mouths circular, whitish-pulverulent to castaneous, fuliginous 

 with age, edges thick, entire; spores globose or ovoid, smooth, 

 ferruginous, 4/x; cystidia ovoid, hyaline, rather abundant, 

 7 X4M- 



Occasional on dead trunks of oak, maple, and beech in Georgia 

 and northward. Sometimes known as "sweet-knot," but the 

 odor has also been described as disagreeable or entirely wanting. 

 Polyporus botryoides Lev. is probably not distinct. 



