— 45 — 



dred. No doubt the species are not all dangerous to the same degree, but do not 

 let us forget this, — they can all become so if certain circumstances are favourable 

 to them. 



There are not only our own species which we have to fear and to fight 

 against ; those of other countries constitute a perpetual menace. Nothing is pro- 

 pagated so easily as an injurious species; there are some that have already invaded 

 the entire world. The importations of plants, grains, fruits, serve as a means of 

 'locomotion, when the insect is not propagated by its natural development ; the 

 potato bug has only taken a few years to cover the thousands of miles that sep- 

 arate our province from its native country; three years after its appearance in 

 the United States the Hessian fly was announced in Australia. 



There is an incontestable fact which should not be forgotten ; that the devel- 

 opment of an injurious species in a country is in direct proportion to the develop- 

 ment of agriculture. To the two or three thousand dangerous species native to 

 our provmce have been added several hundreds of other species which have 

 reached us from the four quarters of the globe. It is for us to do our part and 

 to prepare ourselves accordingly. In order to do this it is absolutely necessary 

 for our government to begin to give instruction to our farming classes concerning 

 the scourge of injurious insects ; a man forewarned is forearmed, as the saying is. 

 It is necessary therefore that the farmers should be fully warned that the enemy 

 is in their fields, their woods, their gardens, their stables, everywhere ; in a wore, 

 that en all sides it gnaws, eats, stings, injures and destroys. 



The establishment of docal stations for the study of insects in the field anl 

 for finding the best remedies is more than ever binding upon us. Each species 

 has its habits which are peculiar to it, its mode of life and its method of destruct- 

 ion ; further, the habits, mode of life and method of work of members of the 

 same species vary according to the conditions of temperature, humidity, etc. It 

 may be that in a good many cases it will be necessary to operate differently against 

 a species, according to whether it is in the north or south of the province. It is 

 only by experimenting that we can learn this. 



The several thousands of dollars that a government invests in such an enter- 

 prise are amply compensated for by the benefits that the entire country reaps 

 from it. Ample proof of this can be found in what has been done in the United 

 States, in France, England, Germany, and other countries. 



NOTES OF SOME PLANT DISEASES OF 1913 



W. P. Eraser, Macdonald College. 



The following notes on some plant diseases, that were prevalent on the Col- 

 lege farm and the surrounding districts during 1913, may be of interest, espe- 

 cially as most of them have not received much notice in this province. 



Doivny Mildew of Alfalfa {Peronospora trifoliorum). — This disease was 

 not common during 1913. It was probably held in check by the very dry weather 

 that prevailed during the summer. It was very severe the previous season on the 

 first crop of alfalfa but did not appear after the first cutting. 



The disease may be recognized by the stunted and contracted appearance of 

 the diseased plants, and the whitish or yellowish colour of the upper leaves. The 

 under side of the discolouTed leaves is covered with a grayish or lilac-colored 



