P. T. Brooks and A. Sharples 77 



success for spraying large numbers of trees. Hence if a mature rubber 

 plantation were sprayed for Pink Disease the upper branches of the 

 trees would remain unprotected and these are the parts most liable to 

 the disease. Again, in view of the regularity of the rainfall in the 

 Federated Malay States a single spraying would be useless. To be 

 effective at all in such a climate, spraying would have to be repeated 

 at frequent intervals. 



Spraying with Bordeaux Mixture or Lime Sulphur, preferably the 

 former, might be effective in checking the disease in plantations not 

 more than three years of age if there was danger of it breaking out in 

 epidemic form, but fortunately there is yet no indication of this in 

 Malaya. In Southern India where there is a prolonged dry season, 

 Anstead (2) reports that painting the forks of young trees with Bordeaux 

 Mixture before the coming of the monsoon reduced the percentage of 

 trees affected from 1-34 to *56, -07 (three applications of the fungicide 

 were given here), and -7 per cent, in various cases. In our opinion 

 estates infected to the extent of about one per cent, would be preferably 

 treated by cutting out or by tarring as described below. Another 

 circumstance, which would only occur exceptionally, and in which 

 spraying a limited number of trees might be undertaken, is where the 

 disease is confined to one portion of an estate. In conjunction with 

 treatment within the infected area in the manner described below, it 

 might be advisable to spray carefully a belt of trees around this area 

 as a precautionary measure. 



When Pink Disease first appears in a rubber plantation it is usually 

 distributed in a sporadic manner. It is of the utmost importance that 

 the disease should be dealt with vigorously from the outset by cutting 

 off and burning the affected parts. In most plantations where Pink 

 Disease appears for the first time only a few trees are attacked. In 

 such cases diseased branches should be cut off at least two feet below 

 the lowest point where there are obvious signs of the fungus and it is 

 preferable to cut them off flush with the main stem or larger branch. 



Where a large number of trees are affected on an estate the manager 

 will probably hesitate before he cuts out the disease in this drastic 

 manner. As an alternative, branches and main stems which appear 

 to have a chance of recovery should be covered with tar for two feet 

 above and below the region over which the fungus is evident. If the 

 disease is dealt with in this way in the early stages many branches and 

 sometimes entire trees may be saved. Even when the fungus has 

 penetrated the bark to a slight extent the external application of tar 



