CHAPTER XIV 



DISEASES AND INSECT PESTS 



LILIES, in common with other plants, are liable to attacks 

 of fungoid diseases and insect pests, besides other ailments, 

 of which the precise nature or origin is not yet understood 

 or unexplainable. Such cases, for example, in which a 

 Lily dies away suddenly without apparent cause, have 

 never been investigated. 



The most virulent fungoid disease is that which attacks 

 the Common White Lily, L. candidum, L. testaceum, L. 

 auratum, and others. It is known as Botrytis cinerea, or 

 commonly White Lily fungus. It is more or less a 

 localised disease, being so virulent in some districts as 

 to almost exterminate the Lily from gardens, while in 

 other parts the disease is unknown. 



It makes its appearance on the plants about the middle 

 of May or earlier, and is seen on the leaves and stems as 

 buff-coloured specks or blotches. 



These marks indicate the spore masses of the fungus, 

 and spread so rapidly over the plant that the leaves in a 

 few days are lifeless. The vital parts of the plant being 

 destroyed, no vigour remains in the plants to sustain the 

 growing flower spikes, and even if the flower buds expand 

 feebly, the flowers are poor and deformed. A long con- 

 tinuance of wet and cold weather during the early stages 

 of growth seems to favour the disease. 



Some observers are of the opinion that the fungus 

 attacks only such plants that have suffered from cold 



winds in spring which tend to impair the health of the 



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