DAIRY, SEED IMPROVEMENT, STOCK BREEDERS' MEETINGS. 265 



POTATO GROWING AND POTATO DISEASES FROM 

 MAINE TO CALIFORNIA. 



W. J. Morse. 



With the rapid development of transportation facihties, both 

 at home and abroad, entirely new and often dangerous disease 

 problems have arisen to confront the potato grower. Some of 

 these potato troubles a generation ago, or even a decade or two 

 ago, we knew but vaguely, or only by reputation. Some we had 

 never even heard of in this country. Yes, more than that, what 

 is undoubtedly the most dangerous and destructive potato dis- 

 ease yet discovered, was unknown till 1896 when it was first 

 reported from Hungary. This is the wart disease or potato 

 canker. In 13 years it had crossed the Atlantic Ocean and was 

 present in Newfoundland. In the meantime it has become 

 widely distributed in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, 

 and has been found in Germany as well. So far as known it 

 has never reached the mainland of North America. 



Powdery scab, while undoubtedly first observed about 75 

 years ago, has only recently come into prominence. Now it is 

 widely scattered, particularly in the British Empire. England 

 apparently has been very generous in passing the disease along 

 to her colonies, but recently some of them, more especially 

 Canada, have taken matters into their own hands, and quaran- 

 tined against her. The distribution of powdery scab in Maine 

 points strongly to the conclusion that Canada is the original 

 source of the major part of the powdery scab infection in this 

 state. The same thing is true of the other infected regions of 

 the United States. Following the discovery of the disease in 

 Maine, it was next found in the two most northern counties of 

 New York. Next came the information that it was present in 

 the states of Washington and Oregon and in British Columbia 

 to the north of them. Now within a month comes the informa- 

 tion that it is quite widely distributed in the northeastern part 



