5 GEORGE V. 



SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16 



A. 1915 



REPORT OF THE DIVISION OF BOTANY. 



(H. T. GTJSSOW, DOMINION BOTANIST.) 



Ottawa, March 31. 1914. 

 J. H. Grisdale, Esq., B. Agr., 



Director, Experimental Farms, 



Department of Agriculture, Ottawa. 



Sir,. — I have the honour to submit herewith my fifth annual r(>port of the work 

 carried on in the Division under my charge. Attached to this main report is a report 

 from the Plant Pathological Branch Laboratory in St. Catharines in charge of Mr. 

 W. A. McCubbin, M.A. The work of the Division, particularly that of advising 

 farmers, fruit-growers, and others is increasing considerably, and much of the time 

 of my stafi is occupied by attention to these requests for information. However, some 

 original investigations have been carried out, but it is realized that there are a 

 considerable number of specific diseases and investigations along other botanical lines 

 which will make an increase of the staff and laboratory accommodation most necessary 

 in the near future. 



Another feature of the work is the administration of the Destructive Insect and 

 Pest Act, as far as plant diseases are concerned; owing to the prominence which the 

 potato has received in this respect during the year my own time and that of several 

 members of my staff has been occupied thereby to a great extent, and in consequence 

 many important lines of research work had necessarily to be curtailed. For conveni- 

 ence sake the report is divided into the following sections, in which, the more 

 important work done by this Division is referred to in detail: — 



I. Plant Pathology. 



(a) Destructive Insect and Pest Act. 

 (h) Investigation of specific diseases 



II. Experimental work. 

 III. Economic Botany. 

 IV. Miscellaneous. , 



V. Report of St. Catharines Laboratory. 



L PLAXT PATHOLOGY. 



(a) Administration of Destructive Insect and Pest A( t. 



Diseases of plants may cause consideraVfle economic losses by direct destruci"ion 

 of cultivated plants, but may also, if prevailing in one country or continent, result 

 in the exclusion of a particular kind of vegetation from export into another country 

 that may be found free from any such disease. Losses from diseases likely to be 

 imported from other countries are guarded against by certain measures restricting 

 importation or prohibiting it altogether from countries in which such diseases may 

 prevail. This attitude is most correct, and different nations as well as parts of the 

 British Empire are more generally adopting legislative measures for the control ol 



16— 54J 8.31 Ottawa. 



