Department of Plant Pathology, 63 



Fifty students registered in this work. Effective teaching of plant dis- 

 eases can be done only with laboratory practice. If we are to continue 

 offering work to winter-course students (and we very much desire to 

 do so), some provision must be made to give them laboratory practice. 



2. Cooperative and demonstration ivork. — In connection with the 

 investigations at our nine field laboratories this past season, we have 

 conducted many cooperative experiments, the work being done by the 

 grower under our immediate direction. Five demonstration field meet- 

 ings were attended during the season, four of which were in localities 

 where we had field laboratories in operation or where such laboratories 

 are to be established next season. These cooperative experiments and 

 demonstrations represent, we believe, the most efi^ective type of extension 

 work. They afiford the much desired opportunity to show the grower 

 what can be done instead of telling him how he should do it. 



3. Exhibits. — Exhibits of the common diseases of fruit, field, and 

 garden crops have been made at several county fruit-growers' meetings 

 and at the meetings of the Western New York Horticultural Society and 

 the State Fruit Growers' Association. These exhibits have included 

 representations of the results obtained at our different field laboratories 

 on the diseases under investigation. The results on apples with lime- 

 sulfur in comparison with bordeaux aroused more interest and enthu- 

 siasm than any other feature at these meetings. Because of the lack of 

 funds we were compelled to omit nearly all exhibits at State and county 

 fairs. These exhibits are a very necessary and vital part of our work 

 and means should be provided for continuing and extending them another 

 year. 



4. Correspondence. — This has grown to great proportions. The loca- 

 tion of field laboratories in many sections of the State, our exhibits at 

 fairs and fruit-growers' meetings, and the increasing number of students 

 going out from our courses, have all contributed to bring increasing 

 numbers of inquiries about diseases and requests for help. The total 

 number of letters written during the year has been 4,138. Besides these 

 a large number of circular letters have been sent to all the newspapers in 

 the State calling the attention of growers to the necessity of prompt 

 action in the control of certain diseases at the proper time of the year. 



5. Newspaper zvork. — Xumerous articles, discussing in a popular way 

 diseases peculiar to certain crops, have been prepared for the local papers 

 in several localities in the State. 



W'q. feel that so far as the extension j)hases of our work are concerned 

 we have met our obligations fairly well considering the funds and men 

 available for the work. But we are anxious to do more of this type 

 of work. 



