2i8 FARM FRIENDS AND FARM FOES 



the top of these the spores are produced. Compare it with 

 an apple tree : the mycelium corresponds in a way to the 

 roots ; the vertical column to the trunk ; the spores to the 

 seeds in the fruit. 



Can you not see that this mold is really a plant, though 

 it lacks the green coloring matter of our more familiar 

 plants ? 



PARASITIC FUNGI 



The toadstools, mushrooms, and molds are all fungi that 

 live at the expense of dead or decaying plant or animal 

 materials. They are not of very great interest to agricul- 

 ture. I have described them here to lead to a clearer 

 knowledge of certain other fungi that are of exceeding im- 

 portance to growing crops. These are the fungi that develop 

 at the expense of the tissues of living plants ; that is, they 

 are parasites rather than saprophytes. They bring disease 

 and death to many crops and cause the myriad forms of 

 fungous diseases that destroy millions of dollars worth of 

 farm and garden produce every year. 



A DYING MUSHROOM 



