147 



The limited distribution of the insect may be accounted for 

 by the probability that only a few specimens were imported 

 original!}' in nddition to which it was later kept in check by 

 parasites affecting similar scales. I believe that with the des- 

 truction of those plants we have eliminated a dangerous pest 

 and may consider ourselves fortunate in having nipped the 

 evil in the bud. 



PUNGUS DISEASES OF VANILLA, COFFEE AND OTHER VEGE- 

 TATION IN KONA. 



Having solved the green bug problem I was confronted with 

 the necessity of allaying the peoples' apprehensions as to the 

 future of vegetation in Kona. Vanilla seems to be suffering 

 from a mysterious enemy to elucidate which it was necessary 

 to become familiar with the history of the plant on Hawaii. 

 This is given here briefly. 



Some 15 years ago Mr. Edwards, who was then a Vanilla 

 grower on the Seychelles, had the misfortune of having his 

 entire Vanilla field devastated by a fungus disease described 

 by Massee in the Kew Bulletin for 1892 as Calospora vanillae. 

 Briefly, this fungus was described as passing through three dis- 

 tinct stages in course of its life cycle. The first of which, 

 known as Ealncsia, alone lives and propagates upon living 

 Vanilla leaves ; while the subsequent two, known as Cytispora 

 and Calospora, do so only upon dying and dead Vanilla leaves. 

 It is the spores of the last stage that germinate upon living 

 leaves and produce the above Ealncsia stage. It becomes evi- 

 dent from these facts that if all dead and decaying Vanilla 

 leaves be burnt the fungus w^ould be deprived of a medium 

 of propagation and thus be either entirely eliminated or at 

 least reduced to insignificance. But by the time this discovery 

 was made it seems to have been too late to save the Vanilla 

 field in the Seychelles. In a subsequent publication Massee 

 reports to have identified this fungus upon Vanilla, also from 

 Antigua and New Grenada. Some two years ago Mr. R. V. 

 Woods, who is also an extensive Vanilla grower of Kona, ob- 

 served some brown discoloration within the stems of his vines, 

 from the effects of which a number of the vines were dying. 

 Climatic and other conditions for Vanilla growing in Kona 



