CHAPTER XII: SPORE-SAC FUNGI— 

 ASCOMYCETES 



All the fungi which belong in the class Ascomycetes de- 

 velop their spores in little membranous sacs called asci. These 

 asci are, as a rule, collected, together 

 with slender empty asci, called para- 

 physes, in variously shaped bodies, 

 known in different orders by different 

 names, such as perithecium, ascoma, 

 apothecium, and receptacle. This class 

 includes in its numbers individuals 

 ranging in size from microscopic one- 

 celled plants to conspicuous and often 

 beautiful specimens. We shall con- 

 cern ourselves with but a few of 

 those conspicuous ones which are attractive either from an edible 

 or an artistic standpoint. 



Asci and paraphyses 



ORDER TUBERALES— TRUFFLES 



The order Tuberales contains the truffles, which are subter- 

 ranean fungi, ranging in size from an acorn to a good-sized po- 

 tato. The asci or spore-sacs are formed 

 on the inte- 

 rior of the 

 fungus, the 

 warty truffle 

 itself being 

 called an as- 

 coma, as it 

 contains the 

 asci. 



Since the time of Pliny and Dioscorides, truffles have been 

 known and esteemed as a table delicacy. Since they mature 



As'-c6-my-ce'-tes Tu'-b^r-a'-les 



135 



Section to show position of 

 asci 



TrufHes, ascoma 



