89 



of attack should have their roots uncovered and all galls removed and 

 destroyed, usually best by fire. They should be pruned away with a 

 sharp tool, when it will often be found possible to leave half or more 

 of the root intact. It is best to cut liberally, as the disease is likely 

 to extend beyond its apparent limits. The cut should be covered 

 with some antiseptic and water-proof substance such as is used in 

 pruning and grafting. If a root has to be severed the cut off part 

 should be removed and destroyed. A little digging will soon reveal 

 the maximum depth to which it is necessary to dig for the galls, this 

 depth being: seldom more than one foot. It is quite as important to- 

 remove the small galls as the larger ones. The smaller ones are more 

 easily seen if the root is washed with the aid of a smart hose, or even- 

 with a brush and water, an operation that is easily performed if the 

 earth be removed in a manner to allow for it. Where a tree or vine- 

 is manifestly on the road to ruin it is much better to remove it and 

 destroy it than to allow it to take its own course. 



DISEASE IN SEED POTATOES. 



" ABE these seed potatoes sound?" is a question that arises con- 

 tinually. If this fact is due to the repeated warnings published with 

 regard to the great danger of spreading Root Gall through the 

 medium of seed potatoes, we have some cause to feel gratified. For 



Fig. 101. The sprouting of a potato suffering 

 from the initial stages of wet rot. 



*K&^5^JiS^<Si Fi , g> 102 -- The s p routi ig <> f a health y p otat <>* 



there is no doubt that scrupulous care should be exercised to prevent 

 this pest from spreading as it has been allowed to do in the past. It 

 is equally certain that it is largely through the medium of seed 

 potatoes that it has become so widely spread. 



The present note, however, does not relate to the Gall Worm, but 

 to another common pest of the potato, namely Wet Rot. The drawings 

 on this page point a moral. They represent two potatoes from the 

 same lot, some of which, however, sprouted much better than others, 

 and no wonder ! From the outside all the potatoes looked about 

 equally good, yet a large part of them were diseased. The sketches 

 show the manner in which the diseased seed differed from the sound. 

 Though in this case no cultures were made to verify the assumption, 

 there can be no doubt that the diseased seed was suffering from the 



