Fungi

Mushrooms, moulds and their minute structures form the subject of M. C. Cooke’s illustrated study, published in 1875 and edited by M. J. Berkeley. Written for students, it begins with the difficulty of drawing boundaries between groups of living things, then turns to the nature, structure and classification of fungi. Chapters consider their uses, habitats, cultivation, geographical distribution, and the collection and preservation of specimens.

Close observation runs through the book. Its drawings depict mushroom sections, spores and germinating forms, while the discussion of growth weighs observations by different researchers and identifies questions still unresolved. Readers interested in the history of biology can see how nineteenth-century investigators compared evidence and debated fungal development. The combination of practical topics and microscopic detail offers a view of mycology as both an outdoor pursuit and a laboratory study.