CHAPTER XII: SPORE-SAC FUNGI— 
ASCOMYCETES 
Att 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 Truffles, ascoma 
asci. 
Since the time of Pliny and Dioscorides, truffles have been 
known and esteemed as a table delicacy. Since they mature 
Section to show position of 
asci 
As'-c8-my-cé’ -tés Ti’ -bér-a'-lés 
135 
