14 



varieties, represented by somewhat more than 600 plants, had 

 reached the blossoming stage. Attention was directed especially 

 to the variety Juarezii which is supposed to represent rather 

 accurately the original "cactus" dahlia as first known in Europe 

 in 1872. 



The Scientific program as announced was as follows: Dr. 

 John H. Barnhart, "Wooden Flowers"; Dr. William A. Murrill, 

 "Notes on Fungi"; Dr. Francis W. Pennell, "Field Excursions"; 

 Dr. P. A. Rydberg "Notes on Philotria.'" The following ex- 

 tracts were furnished by the speakers. 



"Dr. Barnhart exhibited two fine specimens of 'wooden 

 flowers' recently presented to the museum of the New York 

 Botanical Garden by Dr. L. A. Wailes of New Orleans, and 

 remarked upon the cause of these curious malformations. They 

 are found in Central America, where they are known to the 

 natives as 'flor de madera' or 'flor de infierno.' They may be 

 classified as galls and are perhaps the only known kind of galls 

 produced by parasitic flowering plants; being the modification 

 produced in host-tissues by the base of a mistletoe of the genus 

 Phoradendron, this modification persisting after the parasite 

 had dropped from the host. Several good published illustra- 

 tions of the structure were shown." 



"Collecting Fungi in Virginia." 



"During the latter half of July 1919, the writer made a tour 

 through parts of southwest Virginia, returning by way of Blue 

 Ridge Springs, Bedford City, Lynchburg, and Falls Church. A 

 drought early in the month was followed by over a week of rain, 

 which brought out an unusually large and diversified crop of 

 fungi. These were studied and collected for several days in the 

 vicinity of Blacksburg, Virginia, at an elevation of 2,200 feet, 

 where the woodlands are mostly oak-chestnut and the rocks 

 Trenton limestones or subcarboniferous shales and sandstones. 



"Trees were attacked by destructive poly pores, among them 

 Bjerkandera adusta, Coriolus versicolor, Daedalea quercina, 

 Elfvingia lohata, Fulvifomes Robiniae, Grifolia Berkeleyi, Laeti- 

 porus speciosus, Porodaedalea Pint, Trametes robiniophila and 

 Tyromyces Spraguei. The most abundant of these were prob- 



