Shear and Dodge : Patellina, Leptothyrium, Peziza 167 



species. It is said, for example, that species of Gloeosporium 

 are conidial forms of such diverse and distantly related asco- 

 mycetes as Glomerella and Pseudopeziza. When, however, one 

 studies and compares carefully the so-called species of Gloeo- 

 sporium involved, it is found that they are very different, and 

 could not on a purely morphological basis be considered con- 

 generic. The present genus Gloeosporium as treated by Sac- 

 cardo, for example, contains a heterogeneous collection of many 

 imperfectly .known and poorly described forms, really belonging 

 to various and sometimes widely separated genera having in some 

 cases only very slight superficial resemblances. The same is true 

 of most of the large genera of the so-called fungi imperfecti. 



Summary 



This paper contains an account of the life history, morphology 

 and taxonomy of a discomycete, Pezizella lythri (Desm.) Shear 

 and Dodge, which is found on a great variety of plants and plant 

 parts and has three stages in its life cycle : sporodochia, pycnidia 

 and apothecia. 



The conidial stage has received at least seven generic and ten 

 specific names. It belongs to the form genus Hainesia and was 

 described as the monotype of that genus. Its first specific name 

 so far as at present known is lythri, it having been described as 

 Dacryomyces lythri by Desmazieres in 1846. The new combina- 

 tion Hainesia lythri (Desm.) was proposed by von Hohnel in 

 1906. 



The pycnidial stage has also been described under various 

 generic and specific names. It has been referred to at least four 

 different genera and has had at least twelve specific names. It is 

 the type of the genus Sclerotiopsis and its oldest specific name at 

 present known is concava, it having been described at Ceutho- 

 spora concava by Desmazieres in 1847. The new combination, 

 Sclerotiopsis concava (Desm.) Shear and Dodge is therefore pro- 

 posed for it. 



The ascogenous or perfect stage has been described but once 

 so far as known. Cooke & Ellis described it as Peziza (Mollisia) 

 oenotherae in 1878 from stems of Oenotherae biennis collected 



