SOUTHERN POLYPORES 55 



conifers in certain sections, causing decay of the sapwood and 

 exposed heartwood. It is known to cause root-rot in aspen 

 and is doubtless destructive to the roots of other trees. The 

 immense hymenophores are often used by amateur artists for 

 etching. The presence of conidia has recently been questioned. 



39. GANODERMA P. Karst. 



Hymenophore large, sessile or stipitate, perennial or annual, 

 epixylous; surface sulcate, covered with reddish-brown varnish; 

 context punky, brown or pallid; tubes cylindric, concolorous; 

 spores ovoid, brown. 



Context ochraceous to isabelline above, tawny below. 



Hymenophore perennial; margin of pileus truncate at maturity; 



stipe present. I. G. Curtisii. 



Hymenophore annual; margin of pileus acute; stipe present or 



absent. 2. G. sessile. 



Context dark-bay throughout; stipe absent. 



Pileus zonate, even; tubes not stratified. 3. G. zonatum. 



Pileus sulcate, azonate; tubes stratified. 4. G. sulcatum. 



i. GANODERMA CURTISII (Berk.) Murrill 



Pileus corky to woody, reniform, convex above, concave below, 

 5-10 X 8-15 X 1-2 cm.; surface glabrous, ochraceous to lateri- 

 ceous or bay, at first laccate, the varnish soon disappearing, 

 broadly sulcate; margin obtuse to truncate, sulcate, ochraceous, 

 entire, glabrous; context soft-corky, zonate, ochraceous above, 

 fulvous below, 5 mm. thick; tubes perennial, indistinctly strati- 

 fied, 5-8 mm. long each season, avellaneous-umbrinous within, 

 mouths circular to slightly angular, 3-5 to a mm., edges 

 entire, white or cremeous, becoming umbrinous; spores ovoid, 

 attenuate and truncate at the apex, yellowish-brown, 9-11 

 X 5-8 /z; stipe usually eccentric or lateral, erect or ascending, 

 equal or slightly enlarged above, cylindric, bay, laccate, the 

 substance similar to the context and darker at the center, 

 5-10 X 2-3 cm. 



Rather common throughout on or about decayed trunks and 

 stumps of oaks and other deciduous trees. 



2. GANODERMA SESSILE Murrill 



Pileus corky to woody, dimidiate, sessile or stipitate, imbricate 

 or connate at times, conchate to fan-shaped, thickest behind, 

 thin at the margin, 5-15 X 7-25 X 1-3 cm.; surface glabrous, 



