THE RELATIONS BETWEEN SCIENTIFIC BOTANY 



AND PHYTOPATHOLOGY 



DR. 0. APPEL 



Mitglied der Kaiserlichen Biologischen Anstalt fur Land- und 



Forstwirtschaft, Berlin-Dahlem 



The ever-increasing importance of phytopathology is the 

 result of the steady development of agriculture, forestry, and 

 horticulture. In this way phytopathology has become a part 

 of each of these sciences. 



In former times well-known botanists, such as Gleditsch, 

 Martius, Caspary, de Bary, and Sachs did not estimate 



themselves too highly to concern themselves at times with 

 phytopathological problems. In modern times, however, it 

 is not often that a university professor of botany occupies 

 himself with such problems. This is due partially to the 

 specialization which has become a necessity in modern 



science. Above all, however, this is due to a peculiar concep- 

 tion which looks upon the applied branches of applied natural 



science as something inferior to the pure natural sciences. 

 It must, however, be said that we find exceptions even here, 

 if we think of such scientists as Brefeld and De Vries. 



Agriculture has within a short time presented many 

 problems to phytopathology, and of these the principal ones 

 have been those of disease control. These problems were 

 often solved in a hasty way, which, I must admit, lacked 

 scientific thoroughness. But even in the solution of these 

 problems many interesting facts were brought to light. But 

 with the progress in working out these questions it became 

 more and more evident that many of these problems could 

 not be ultimately solved unless investigated in a thoroughly 

 scientific manner. 



In criticising the plant pathologists it should not be for- 

 gotten that most of them are for the greater part autodidacts. 

 Until recent times there were no places where scientific 

 phytopathology was taught. In Germany it was only the 



Ann. Mo. Bot. Gard., Vol. 2, 1915 



(275) 



