366 STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



control of certain limb and twig diseases of fruit trees, fii ])articular, 

 attention was concentrated on a serious canker disease wiiicli appeared 

 ia apple trees in Nortliern Michigan. The canker was dilfercnt from 

 any of the known cankers of apple, being distinct in the cliaracter of the 

 lesion produced. Bark on affected limbs was killed to the wood and 

 after a year or two the killed bark peeled in strips leaving a decorticated 

 branch on which the causal organism commonly fruited. The associated 

 organism was obtained in pure culture, its morphology determined and 

 tlie etiological relationship established. The organism proved to he a 

 member of the great group of Fungi Imperfecti, the Sphaeropsidales. It 

 seemed to correspond exactly with a fungus from api)le which Saccardo 

 found in Italy many years ago and Avhich he described under the name 

 of Aposphaeria fusco-maculans. For reasons outlined in another pub- 

 lication, the organism was transferred to another genus and now is 

 called Plenodomus fuscomaculans. This phase of the subject lias been 

 reported in a preliminary way in the 1915 Keport of the Michigan Acad- 

 emy of Science. Due to unfortunate delays in publishing this report 

 this preliminary paper has not as yet been distributed. It Avas also rc- 

 ])orted in abstract form at the Columbus meeting of the American Asso- 

 ciation for the Advancement of Science. This abstract has appeared in 

 Science, March 10th, 1916. 



The greatest emphasis in the study of this fungus has been placed up- 

 on the physiological activities of the parasite. This work was done in 

 part at the Cryptogamic Laboratory of the University of Michigan. This 

 phase of the work has appeared in the Journal of Agricultural Research, 

 January 17th, 1916. 



The final publication on this project Avill consist of a technical bulle- 

 tin dealing Avith the organism as a plant pathogene. This Avork has been 

 completed but due to press of other work has not been put into final 

 shape for publication. 



With the accomplishment of these results the present Adams project 

 Avas terminated, and a new project planned. This project is a natural 

 outgrowth of the physiological studies already carried out. 



The formal statement of the object of the project is as folloAvs : 



"To determine Avith some of the plant pathogenes of the Fungi Imper- 

 fecti, biological relations Avhich may give a basis for identification and 

 classification as well as understanding of physiological and life history 

 problems. The Fungi Imperfecti form a group which at present has no 

 basis for classification other than a highly artificial one. Attention will 

 be concentrated on the section of the group represented by the genus 

 Phoma and its close allies." 



(2) HATCH FUND. 



Plant Disease Survey. 



The work under the Hatch fund has continued along the same lines as 

 in previous years. The plant disease survey of the State has been con- 

 tinued. In making this survey the extensive correspondence of the de- 

 partment on plant diseases already referred to Avas found to be an in- 

 valuable adjunct. 



The work on the plant disease survey has been further carried on by 

 means of questionnaire letters and by field trips to various parts of the 



