180 



ASCOJIYfETES. 



In this group arc ineliulfd certain species of fungi which are 

 ahle of themselves to induce rot in ripe fruit. Davaiue ^ waa 

 the first to direct attention to these, and recently they have been 

 made the subject of very searching investigations by Wehmer."^ 

 According to this author, only a limited number of species of 

 fungi accompany this kind of rot and give rise to it primarily. 

 As a rule they effect an entrance by some wound, possilily also 

 through lenticels or other apertures. Some forms prefer certain 

 species of host-fruit, in some cases even certain varieties. 



Wehmer gives the following synopsis : 



FlU'IT. 



Apple, 



Pear, 



Medlar, 



Grape, 

 Phini,- 



i \ 



Cause of Ripe-kot. 



Pemcillmm glaucum. 



Mucor piriformis. 



{Mucor stolonifer.) 

 j Penicillium glaucum. 

 yBotrytis cinerea. 

 j Mucor racemosus. 

 \ Pen icillium glaucum . 



Fruit. 

 Orange, 

 Citron, 

 Mandarin, 

 Cherry, - 



W 



aliiut. 



Cause ok Kii-e-uot. 



I Penicillium italicum, 

 j Penicilliumolivaceum. 



■ Penicillium glaucmn. 

 (Botrytis cinerea. 

 \ Penicillium glaucn m . 



He then arranges them according to their occurrence, beginning 

 with the most frequent : 



Frnicillmm glaucum Link. : on stone-fruits, pome-fruits, grapes, 

 walnuts, especially common on apples. 



Penicillmm italicum Wehmer : on southern fruits, e.g. citron, 

 orange, mandarin. 



Mucor inriformis Fisch. : on pome-fruits, particularly on pears. 



Botrytis cinerea Pers. : on grapes and walnuts. 



The following are less common species : 



Penicillium, olivaceum A¥ehmer : on southern fruits. 



Mucor racemosus Fres. : on plums. 



Mucor stolonifer Ehrenl). : on apples. 



Iiipe fruit sliould be so treated as to remove risk of infection as 

 much as possible. This is done by storing the fruits in airy, dry 

 places, and in loose contact with each other. A damp atmosphere 

 promotes infection and facilitates the progress of rot. All decaying 

 fruit should be separated at once, and valuable fruits are best 

 isolated by wrapping singly in tissue paper before transportation. 



' Davaine, " Reclierches sur la pourriture des fruits et des vegetaux vivants," 

 Compt. rend., Lxni., 1866. 

 -Wehmer, Beilruge z. KenntnisH einhdmischer Pihe, Jena (Fischer), 1895. 



