IsYAV York AgricultuRxVL Experiment Station. 425 



CANE BLIGHT. 



Descrijition. — This disease is characterized by wilting of the 

 foliage and dying of the canes. Healthy and diseased canes com- 

 monly occur in the same hill. The disease may appear at any 

 time during the growing season, but it is most virulent about the 

 time the fruit is ripening. It appears that there are two forms of 

 cane blight. The form occurring in the Hudson Valley^^ is caused 

 by a sterile fungiis which works in the pith and under the bark. 

 In the western part of the State there occurs a currant cane blight 

 which, according to Durand,^"^ is caused by the semi-parasitic fun- 

 gus, Nectria cinnaharina (Tode.) Fr. 



Treatment. — Probably the most practical method of fighting 

 cane blight is to go over the plantation at frequent intervals dur- 

 ing the summer and cut out and burn the affected canes. In doing 

 this, care must be taken to cut Avell below the lowest point of the 

 disease. After cutting into diseased wood the pruning knife 

 should be disinfected before it is used on healthy wood. A 5 per 

 ct. solution of carbolic acid is a good disinfectant foT this purpose. 



Cuttings should be taken only from plants known to be healthy. 



CUKRA^^T IXSECTS. 



PLANT LICE. 



The first indications that the plant lice are at work are the small 

 bladder-like galls on the upper surfaces of the leaves. The galls 

 soon turn red, increase in size and may finally include nearly the 

 entire leaf. The lice- congregate in large numbers in the corres- 

 ponding pockets on the under sides of the leaves. Several species 

 work on the currant, but the most common is the currant plant 

 louse, Myzus ribis Linn, 



Treatment. — The infested bushes should be sprayed with a solu- 

 tion of whale oil soap, one pound to seven gallons of water. The 



23 For an account of current cane blight in the Hudson Valley, see Bui. 

 107 of this Station, p. 291. 



24 Durand, E. J. A Disease of Currant-Canes. Cornell Univ. Agr. Exp. Sta. 

 Bui. 125. 



