REPORT OF THE STATE BOTANIST I906 7 



develop any fruit. The essential floral organs were frozen and 

 consequently the fruit failed to develop. In such cases the stamens 

 and pistils are sometimes frozen before the buds open. When the 

 flowers appear they look fresh and fair at a distance but on close 

 inspection the stamens and pistils are seen to be dead and blackened. 

 If the freeze is very severe after the buds are much swollen no 

 species escapes. If less severe, only the flowers of the most tender 

 species or those which are in the most susceptible condition are 

 killed. During the past season many species of the Tomentosae 

 group failed to develop fruit though at flowering time they were 

 full of blossoms. Species in the same locality whose time of flower- 

 ing is earlier may escape injury. 



The comparatively large genera Hygrophorus and Russula 

 present some peculiar difficulties. The subgenera are not sharply 

 differentiated and in some cases American species appear to com- 

 bine characters of two subgenera or do not in all respects agree 

 with the characters ascribed to any of the subgenera. Nevertheless 

 a revision of the New York species of these genera has been at- 

 tempted and the Friesian arrangement of the subgenera and species 

 followed as far as possible. Descriptions have been rewritten and 

 in some cases made more full and satisfactory. 



The plan of identifying specimens of plants for correspondents 

 and others who send or bring them to the office for that purpose 

 has been followed. This not only results in the dissemination of 

 useful botanical knowledge, but also in sometimes acquiring in- 

 teresting and valuable specimens for the herbarium that otherwise 

 might fail to reach it. The number of those for whom determina- 

 tions of specimens have been made is 82. The number of deter- 

 minations is 435. 



Botanical specimens representing 20 species of trees have been 

 collected but not included in the foregoing enumeration. They are 

 intended to replace the lost or damaged specimens of the swinging 

 frames, which loss occurred while these were absent at the St Louis 

 and Portland expositions. 



An additional table case of specimens of parasitic fungi has been 

 prepared and placed in the botanical exhibition room. It contains 

 specimens of 24 species some of which are injurious to cultivated 

 plants, some to wild plants. 



The case containing the specimens of the Japanese edible mush- 

 room Shiitake, Pie u rot us bretschneideri Kalchb., on 

 the branches where they grew, has been repaired and placed on ex- 



