202 



SCIENTIFIC AGRICULTURE. 



February, 1922. 



flock, but their progeny have proved to 

 be above the average as breeders.. . 

 Observations About Reds. 

 The breeding of heavy producing Reds 

 presents a difficult problem. The breed 

 is outstanding for its vigor and for the 

 size and hatchability of eggs, hatchabil- 

 ity, running under University of B. C. 

 tests, b?ing higher than with either the 

 Barred Rocks or White Wyandottes. 

 The chicks are at the same time some- 

 what more vigorous. A good commercial 

 average in egg production apparently can 

 be developed and maintained. The ques- 

 tion of the amount of attention that can 

 be paid to the bright, purs, lustrous red 

 that the standard calls for, is problem- 

 atical. Many disappointments have been 

 experienced so far in efforts made to 

 either maintain or to improve standard 

 red color.. It is most difficult to secure 

 males from high producing hens that are 

 line-bred for color and egg production 

 at the same time. Outcrossing appears 

 dangerous because it has led to great 



variation in color markings and even to 

 standard disqualifications such as stubs 

 on legs and feathers and down between 

 toes.. The development of high-produc- 

 ing, line-bred Reds that will reproduce 

 true to standard color offers a big field 

 for Red breeders. 



Notes. 



1st. All records at University of B. 

 C. to date have been produced without 

 the use of artificial light. 



2nd. Birds referred to in article have 

 produced records under students' prac- 

 tice work under the S.C.R. New groups 

 of students coming on each week or 'each 

 alternate week have no doubt affected 

 records somewhat unfavorably. 



3rd. Incubation conditions have been 

 far from ideal, so that fertility figures 

 quoted are probably lower than they 

 ought to be. 



4th. All records have been produced 

 under a nine hour day labor system, which 

 has militated somewhat against obtain- 

 ing the greatest efficiency. 



Diseases of the Potato 



By B. T. DICKSON, 

 Professor of Botany, Macdonald College. 



(Continued.) 



In the January number of Scientific 

 Agriculture, two diseases were discussed — 

 Powder}- Scab and Black stem-rot. Before 

 dealing witli tlie next group several points 

 are worthy of mention regarding the above 

 diseases. Dr. Morse, Director of the 

 Maine Station, has informed the writer in 

 correspondence tliat Powdery Scab h^s not 

 been found to any extent during tlie last 

 fi /e or six years in Maine. That a similar 

 situation occurs in New Brunswick is borne 

 out by correspondence between Dr. Morse, 

 Mr. Cunningham and the writer. 



The outline list of diseases to be dealt 

 with during tliis series is given in Vol. II, 

 No. 2 (Oct.), 1921 and under Group 7 

 "Skin spot" caused by Oospora pustiilans 

 is placed among the diseases caused by 

 Fungi imperfecti. Potatoes with a spot ap- 

 parently exactly like that caused by 0, 

 pustulans, as described in England, were 



found in shipments to the Spokane market 

 from British Columbia. In fact Heald 

 found that 95 per cent of the tubers show- 

 ed lesions. The spots are circular, brown 

 and small when young, darkening with 

 age. At first the spots appear slightly 

 elevated but later somewhat depressed. 



Under moist conditions sporulation and 

 growth occur in the lesions so that fur- 

 ther necrosis occurs. Shapovalov, in a 

 paper given at the Toronto meeting of the 

 American Phytopathological Society, 

 states tliat the pustides are identical with 

 those of the immature or closed-sorus stage 

 of powdery scab. This author investigated 

 the fungi which, as secondary organisms, 

 invade the ''skin-spot" pustules and found 

 that they varied with the locality. 



With regard to control of the Black 

 stem-rot of potatoes it was stated that the 

 formaldehyde method should be practised. 

 It should be pointed out that this method 

 will not affect bacteria inside the tissues 



