ies is usually quite stout, though it varies to
some extent in some of the different species, in proportion to the
thickness of the cap. The stem is marked in some of the species by large
wrinkles or folds extending irregularly but with considerable uniformity
over the surface. The surface is further minutely roughened by whitish
or grayish elevations, giving it a granular appearance. Sometimes these
granules are quite evenly distributed over the surface, and in some
species they are more or less separated into small areas by narrow
lines.

The morels appear early in the season, during May and June. They grow
usually in damp situations, and are more abundant during rainy weather.
Three species are illustrated here.

=Morchella esculenta= Pers. =Edible.=--The name of this species, the
esculent morel, indicates that it has been long known as an edible
plant, especially since the man who named it lived a century ago. The
plant is from 5--15 cm. high, the stem is 1--3 cm. in thickness, and the
cap is broader than the stem. The cap is somewhat longer than broad, and
is more or less oval or rounded in outline. The arrangement of the pits
on the surface of the cap is regarded by some as being characteristic of
certain species. In this species the pits are irregularly arranged, so
that they do not form rows, and so that the ridges separating them do
not run longitudinally from the base toward the apex of the cap, but run
quite irregularly. This arrangement can be seen in Fig. 216, which is
from a photograph of this species. The stem is hollow.

=Morchella conica= Pers. =Edible.=--This species is very closely related
to the preceding one, and is considered by some to be only a form of the
_Morchella esculenta_. The size is about the same, the only difference
being in the somewhat longer cap and especially in the arrangement of
the pits. These are arranged more or less in distinct rows, so that the
ridges separating them run longitudinally and parallel from the base of
the cap to the apex, with connecting ridges extending across between the
pits. The cap is also more or less conic, but not necessarily so. Figure
217 illustrates this species. The plant shown here is branched, and this
should not be taken to be a character of the species, for it is not,
this form being rather rare.

[Illustration: FIGURE 217.--Morchella conica (natural size).
Copyright.]

[Illustration: PLATE 86, FIGURE 218.--Morchella crassipes (natural
size