ZOOLOGY AND BOTANY, MICROSCOPY^ ETO. 113 



(3) Asci with eight spores of medium size. 

 a. With palmella-gonidia. 



a, Pyrenocarpi. 



/S. Coniocarpi. 



y. Discocarpi. 

 &. With trentepohlia-gonidia {lonaspis, Glomerilla ?). 



Fungi. 



Mycorhiza.* — In a further communication on this subject, Herr 

 B. Frank states his opinion that the symbiosis is probably one to 

 which all trees are subject under certain conditions; but that the 

 mycorhiza is probably formed only on soils which contain a large 

 amount of humus or of undecomposed remains of plants; and its 

 apparent limitation at present to the Cupuliferae and a few other trees 

 is probably due to their partiality for soil of this character. Through 

 the mycorhiza the tree absorbs not only water and mineral con- 

 stituents, but organic substances also derived from the humus, the 

 humus having no power of supplying these substances directly to the 

 tree. Of especial value is the mycorhiza in the case of those plants 

 which, like Monotropa, do not form chlorophyll. 



A discussion followed the reading of the paper, in which a general 

 agreement with the conclusions of the author was declared by Woronin, 

 Eeess, De Bary, and others. 



Fungi of Cellars-t — Dr. J. Schroter describes the fungi found in 

 the cellars which undermine Breslau, where the external conditions 

 are great moisture, a nearly uniform temperature, and almost complete 

 darkness. The walls are covered with a mucilaginous slime, 1-1^ cm. 

 thick, of a light flesh-colour due to the presence of oxide of iron. 

 This slime consists to a very large extent of various micrococci, the 

 most abundant of which is a peculiar hitherto undescribed species, 

 which the author calls Leucocystis cellaris, resembling, in its simplest 

 stage of development, Friedlander's micrococcus of pneumonia, Leuco- 

 cystis pneumoniae. It is composed of colourless strongly-refractive 

 cells l*5-2 /A long, and 1-1*5 /a broad, inclosed in a gelatinous 

 envelope as much as 5-8 yu, in thickness, and forming large lumps. 

 The cocci multiply by dividing in all three directions, the products 

 remaining, up to a certain point, inclosed in the original envelope. 

 Both cocci and envelope are strongly stained by anilin pigments; 

 careful treatment shows the envelope to be composed of a number of 

 layers. 



In addition to this there are found in the slime many other 

 Schizomycetes : large bacilli in various stages of division, a very long 

 bacterium with distinct coils, imbedded in a small amount of slime, 

 a Myconostoc, and a strongly refractive micrococcus in moniliform 

 chains. 



In all the older cellars is found also the tinder-fungus, Bhacodium 



* Ber. Deutsch. Bot. Gesell. Generalversammlung, 1885, pp. xxvii.-xxxiii. 

 Cf. this Journal, v. (1885) pp. 844, 1025. 



t JB. Schles. Gesell. Vaterl. Kultur, Ixi. (1884) p. 193, and Ixii. (1885) p. 290. 

 See Bot. Centialbl., xxiii. (1885) pp. 174, 333. 



Ser. 2.— Vol. VI. I 



