6 HISTORY OF LICHENOLOGY 



plants are included twenty-five species of lichens, several of which he 

 considered new discoveries, no fewer than five being some form of Lichen 

 gelatinosus {Collema). Buxbaum\ in his enumeration of plants from Halle, 

 finds place for forty-nine lichen species, with, in addition, eleven species of 

 Coralloides; and Vaillant^ in listing the plants that grew in the neighbour- 

 hood of Paris gives thirty-three species for the genus Lichen of which a 

 large number are figured, among them species of Ramalina, Parmelia, 

 Cladonia, etc. 



In England, however, Dillenius', who at this time brought out a third 

 edition of Ray's Synopsis and some years later his own Historia Muscorum, 

 still described most of his lichens as "Lichenoides" or "Coralloides"; and no 

 other work of note was published in our country until after the Linnaean 

 system of classification and of nomenclature was introduced. 



D. Period III. 1729-1780 



Lichens were henceforth regarded as a distinct genus or section of 

 plants. Micheli^ an Italian botanist. Keeper of the Grand Duke's Gardens 

 in Florence, realized the desirability of still further delirhitation, and he 

 broke up Tournefort's large comprehensive genera into numerical Order.s. 

 In the genus Lichen, he found occasion for 38 of these Orders, determined 

 mainly by the character of the thallus, and the position on it of apothecia 

 and soredia. He enumerates the species, many of them new discoveries, 

 though not all of them recognizable now. His great work on Plants is 

 enriched by a series of beautiful figures. It was published in 1729 and 

 marks the beginning of a new Period — a new outlook on botanical science. 

 Micheli regarded the apothecia of lichens as "floral receptacles," and the 

 soredia as the seed, because he had himself followed the development of 

 lichen fronds from soredia. 



The next writer of distinction is the afore-mentioned Dillen or 

 Dillenius. He was a native of Darmstadt and began his scientific career 

 in the University of Giessen. His first publisTied work" was an account of 

 plants that were to be found near Giessen in the different months of the 

 year. Mosses and lichens he has assigned to December and January. 

 Sherard induced him to come to England in 172 1, and at first engaged his 

 services in arranging the large collections of plants which he, Sherard, had 

 brought from Smyrna or acquired from other sources. 



Three years after his arrival Dillenius had prepared the third edition of 

 Ray's Synopsis for the press, but without putting his name on the title-page^ 

 Sherard explained, in a letter to Dr Richardson of Bierly in Yorkshire, that 

 "our people can't agree about an editor, they are unwilling a foreigner should 



1 Buxbaum 1721. 2 Vaillant 1727. a Dillenius 1724 and 1741. 



* Micheli 1729. " Dillenius 1719. * See Druce and Vines 1907. 



