In _Cl. alpicola_ it has been found that the rooting structure is frequently as thick as the podetium itself. If the podetium originates from the basal portion of the squamule, the hyphae from the chondroid layer, surrounding the hollow centre, take a downward direction and become continuous with the rhizoid. Should the point of insertion be near the apex of the squamule, these hyphae form a nerve within the squamule or along the under surface, and finally also unite with the rhizoid at the base, a form of rooting characteristic of _Cl. cartilaginea_, _Cl. digitata_ and several other species. Mycelium may spread from the rhizinae along the surface of the substratum and give rise to new squamules and new tufts of podetia, a method of reproduction that is of considerable importance in species that are generally sterile and that form no soredia. Many species, especially those of the section _Cladina_, soon lose all connection with the substratum, there being a continual decay of the lower part of the podetia. As apical growth may continue for centuries, the perishing of the base is not to be wondered at. G. HAPTERA The presence of haptera in _Cladoniae_ has already been alluded to. They occur usually in the form of cilia or rhizinae[404], but differ from the latter in their more simple regular growth being composed of conglutinate parallel hyphae. They arise on the edges of the squamules or of the scyphus, but in _Cl. foliacea_ and _Cl. ceratophylla_ they are formed at the points of the podetial branches (more rarely in _Cl. cervicornis_ and _Cl. gracilis_). By the aid of these rhizinose haptera the squamule or branch becomes attached to any substance within reach. They also aid in the production of new individuals by anchoring some fragment of the thallus to a support until it has grown to independent existence and has produced new rhizinae or hold-fasts. They are a very prominent feature of _Cl. verticillaris_ f. _penicillata_ in which they form a thick fringe on the edges of the squamules, or frequently grow out as branched cilia from the proliferations on the margins of the scyphus. H. MORPHOLOGY OF THE PODETIUM In the above account, the podetia have been treated as part of the vegetative thallus, seeing that, partly or entirely, they are assimilative and absorptive organs. This view does not, however, take into account their origin and development, in consideration of which Wainio[405] and later Krabbe[406] considered them as part of the sporiferous organ. This view was also held by some of the earliest lichenologists: Necker[407], for instance, constantly referred to the upright structure as “stipes”; Persoon[408] included it, under the term “pedunculus,” as part of the “inflorescence” of the lichen, and Acharius[409] established the name “podetium” to describe the stalk of the apothecium in _Baeomyces_.