138 DIE-BACK OF CHILLIES IN BIHAR 
the chill crop, and the young plants were attacked by white-ants. The crop 
Was put to a severe test on account of the unfavourable weather. From the 
middle of September to the first week of October, when the plants had 
commenced to flower, and consequently were in the stage when they are most 
readily infected, the days were cloudy and there was more or less rain almost 
every day. The relative humidity was therefore very high—between 85 and 96 
percent. Those were the conditions highly favourable for causing an epidemic, 
and there was one, judging from the amount of disease in the control plots and 
in the ryots’ fields. Another factor which tried the efficiency of the control 
measures was the presence of a second disease, hitherto unobserved on this 
crop ; this was due to Choanephora Cucurbitarum (B. & Rav.) Thaxt.! which 
caused much damage, It started from the flower or leaf-bud and led to a wet rot 
of the shoot. 
In spite of these adverse circumstances, one of the control measures, v7Z., 
spraying, gave satisfactory results. q 
To judge the effects of spraying and manuring on the disease on fruits we 
need only consider the results of the first four pickings done up to the 8th of 
December, because after this date the percentage of diseased fruits was 
found to be negligible. 
| 
| = Ss eS | Perc ENTAGH OF DISEASED | 
= S g FRUITS iS | 
= = = —) ——-—- -—| Sz : 
aS ie |. 3 a. |gé¢ EU a eee Ss | The date when 
g o ~s |os | 3 |-s |. 88 |. thediscases um 
ae = s Nikos (sii cman oer. EDD. ol gees was first 
ac) 3 ae Lhe 0 -g o -—a | ol ay observed 
7s a NS oO i) Ce 
= mw eee rw ‘ae 189 =r = o 
ws 0's =< eee eral Sere 
se | oh | BE | oS Paslexz elses] € 
Ib; oz. | lb. oz. | \b. oz | 
| | 
(1) Bombay variety | .. “4 ee eae ove || ts ne eee .. | rdth October. 
(2) Chilli and maize | 25 44 | 9 123) 35 1} 685 | 22°0 | 44:0 7'7 | 27:4 | 27th September 
(3) Control 38 6) 20 8/58 14/| 78:5, 30-0 | 33-0 | 12:8 | 34:3 | Sth October. 
(4) Manured 207 «0 | 51 103/258 103 25°0 | 17-5 | 25-4 | 17:3 | 19°8 Sth October. 
| 
(5) Peshawar 
(6) Control 104 12 | 57 54162 14 72°8 | 33°3 | 37°0' | 16°6 | 354 8th October. 
aN Ge Selle : : ie iF 4. eg 
(7) Sprayed 120 8;10 74/130 154 11:6 75 | 10°0 v5 7*4 | 10th October, 
(8) Manured late OWNER Rea ites + | ++ oho < 5. 0 re Se 26th October. 
* Dastur, J. F. Choanephora Cucurvitarum (Be & Ray.) Thaxter on Chillies. Ann. Bot., XXX1 
No, CXXXV, 1920, p. 399, 
