156 Report of the Botanist of the 



average farmer. This is shown by the results of the business experi- 

 ments recorded in this bulletin and also by the experience of thou- 

 sands of practical farmers scattered over those portions of the United 

 States in which late blight is destructive. 



Much of the agitation for a better fungicide than bordeaux mix- 

 ture for spraying potatoes comes from people who have some sub- 

 stitute for it to sell. We wish here to state that while there are upon 

 the market several patented fungicides or insecticides and fungicides 

 combined which are recommended for use on potatoes, none of them, 

 so far as we know, is equal to the ordinary, home-made bordeaux 

 mixture and paris green as a preventive of blight and insect attacks. 



CONDITION OF THE POTATO CROP IN NEW YORK IN 



1903. 



The severe spring drought, ending about June 7, delayed planting 

 and made the crop unusually late. In many cases the potatoes did 

 not come up well. Plowever, a subsequent abundance of rain and 

 cool weather soon put the crop in good condition. Except on Long 

 Island there was little trouble from flea-beetles; and "bugs," too, 

 were rather less troublesome than usual. Early blight (Alfernaria 

 solani) did no damage anywhere in the State. 



On Long Island the late blight {PhytopJithora infestaiis) seems to 

 have first come to notice about July 10 to 15 and continued active 

 during the remainder of the season, being most virulent about 

 August 7 to 15. In the eastern part of Long Island, particularly, 

 most fields were nearly done growing before the epidemic of August 

 7 to 15 and consequently the yield was not greatly shortened by the 

 premature death of the plants. Some farmers who dug and marketed 

 their crop before August 15 got good yields and lost but little from 

 rot. During the following week rot set in to such an extent that 

 most buyers refused to take any potatoes for several days. Thus, on 

 the later part of the crop there was much loss from rot, variously 

 estimated at from 5 to 75 per ct. in different fields. 



