448 
McCulloch (1944) reported that in 
1923 she received from two localities in 
California a large number of gladiolus 
corms which, although normal in external 
appearance, showed, when cut, 90 per cent 
of the interior rotted. The rot varied from 
a slight discoloration in the basal scar to 
browning of the entire core and radiating 
fibrovascular strands. From these corms 
was isolated a /usarium that proved capa- 
ble of causing the disease. 
McCulloch (1944) reported further 
that in 1925 and 1926 she received sim- 
ilar specimens from states as widely sep- 
arated as North Dakota, Mississippi, and 
New Jersey. The progress of the disease 
seemed definitely from west to east, with 
prevalence increasing each season. In 1926 
and 1927, McCulloch found the disease in 
shipments of corms from Holland. The 
usual Fusarium was isolated from all 
these specimens. 
According to McCulloch (1944), N. 
van Poeteren ‘reported the vascular 
disease as present in Holland as early as 
1925.” A dry rot of gladiolus caused by 
Fusarium was mentioned in an Annual 
Report of the Experimental and Research 
Station, Cheshunt, Hertfordshire, Eng- 
land (Anonymous 1927). Moore (1939) 
reported a vascular Fusarium disease from 
the same country. Bellard (1933), Dim- 
ock (1941, 1945), and Nelson (1937a, 
1938a, 19384, 1948) published brief ac- 
counts of the vascular form of the disease. 
McCulloch (1944) published an exten- 
sive account of this form. 
Massey (1922) published a brief note 
and, later (1926), a more extensive de- 
scription of a corm rot which he consid- 
ered primarily a disease of stored corms, 
although infections occurred in the field. 
McCulloch (1944) considered “the vascu- 
lar disease” entirely distinct from the corm 
rot described by Massey. 
Nelson (1937b, 1948) described a Fu- 
sarium disease of gladiolus which he 
thought distinct from the diseases de- 
scribed by Massey and McCulloch. 
McClellan (1947) included as symp- 
tom expressions of one disease the symp- 
toms of the two diseases described by Mas- 
sey and McCulloch. McClellan recog- 
nized, however, that there are differences 
of opinion among those who have worked 
Ittinors NaturaAL History Survey BULLETIN 
Vol. 26, Art. 6 
with Fusarium disease of gladiolus as to 
whether the two types are distinct dis- 
eases or merely forms of the same disease. 
NAMES OF THE DISEASE 
The use of various names in the litera- 
ture to designate the forms of the Fusar-— 
ium disease of gladiolus has created much — 
confusion in the minds of readers and re- — 
search workers. McCulloch (1944) used 
the names yellows, wilt, and core rot for — 
the vascular type of the disease. Massey — 
(1922, 1926) designated the disease de- — 
scribed by him merely as Fusarium rot. 
Creager (194+) used the name brown — 
rot for the type of corm rot commonly as- — 
sociated with the Picardy variety. He 
stated, “Fusarium brown rot is not the — 
same as Fusarium yellows or core rot; they — 
are two distinct diseases.”’ “The symptoms 
commonly found on Picardy, however, — 
seem to be the same as those described by — 
Massey (1926) on other varieties. Pic- — 
ardy was not introduced until 1931, 5 
years after Massey’s work was published. — 
Dimock (1945) used only the name yel-— 
lows and listed Picardy as one of the sus- — 
ceptible varieties. 
Nelson (1948) used the names Fu- — 
sarium dry rot and brown rot for the dis- — 
ease originally described by Massey. He — 
stated that this disease “has sometimes 
been confused with Fusarium yellows, an — 
entirely different malady. The chief re-— 
semblance between the diseases is that both — 
cause a brown, dry rot of the corm. The 
best evidence of dissimilarity is demon- 
strated by the high resistance of the vari- 
ety Picardy to Fusarium yellows and its 
equally great susceptibility to Fusarium — 
dry rot.” 
The third type of disease described by — 
Nelson (19376, 1948) was designated by — 
him as basal dry rot. 
McClellan (1947) stated, “At least 
two diseases of gladiolus have been de-— 
scribed as being caused by fungi of the Fu- 
sarium group. One of these is a corm rot — 
that is principally a storage disease; the — 
other is the yellows disease that occurs in 
the field. Yellows has been subdivided 
further into (1) a core rot type, a type 
confined to the water-conducting system; 
and (2) a basal rot type.’ He then fol- 
