168 COTTON 



brown areas at first are produced, and eventually 

 the bark dies. As a result of this injury the leaves 

 may turn yellow, wilt, and fall from the plant; 

 though, unlike the rust with which these symptoms 

 often are confused, the plant rarely if ever produces 

 another crop of leaves when affected by the anthrac- 

 nose. 



As a result of the boll anthracnose, very serious 

 losses may result. A boll when attacked by this 

 fungus assumes, particularly on the side exposed to 

 the sun, a bronzy yellow due to the growth of the 

 vegetative threads (mycelium) of the fungus in the 

 walls of the fruit. If the bolls are nearly mature, 

 especially if the weather is not very moist, no very 

 serious damage to the bolls may result, and they 

 may open in a perfectly normal manner. But if 

 the bolls are attacked when young, or if the weather 

 is rather moist, the fungus may cause the boll to 

 open prematurely and expose the lint to rotting. 

 The anthracnose may become epidemic, and cause 

 very great losses. In this way it caused very 

 serious trouble in many parts of Alabama during 

 last season. Under such circumstances the sur-^ 

 face of the bolls often becomes covered with 

 a pinkish coat composed of the spores of the, 

 fungus. 



At present no remedy is known, but if the ravages 

 of the disease render -such effort necessary, it may 

 be possible to select and develop resistant strains 

 or varieties that will be nearly immune against its 

 attacks. 



Shedding the Bolls: This trouble has been long 

 known and is very frequently a serious loss to the 

 cotton farmer. Alternating wet and dry weather is 

 the main trouble. Every farmer has noticed that 

 during a time of excessive wet weather the ground 



