TOMATO DISEASES I4I 



have not yet been published. The physiological con- 

 ditions of the plant appear to be important. The dis- 

 ease is worst in dry weather and light soils, where the 

 moisture supply is insufficient, and irrigation is bene- 

 ficial in such cases. Spraying does not control point- 

 rot so far as present evidence goes. 



Anthracnose — ripe-rot — {C olletotrichum phomoides 

 (Sacc.) Chest.), is distinguished from the point- rot 

 by the fact that it occurs mainly on ripe or nearly 

 ripe fruits, producing a soft and rapid decay. Wide- 

 spread losses from this cause are not common, but 

 when a field becomes infected a considerable propor- 

 tion of the crop within a limited area may be destroyed 

 if humid or rainy weather prevails. Preventive meas- 

 ures only can be employed. These should consist in 

 collecting and destroying diseased fruit and in sta- 

 king and trimming the vines to admit light and air to 

 dry out the foliage. Bordeaux mixture applied after the 

 development of the disease would be of doubtful effi- 

 ciency and would be objectionable on account of the 

 sediment left on the ripe fruit. 



DISEASES OF THE ROOT OR STEM 



Damping off. — Young plants in seed-beds often 

 perish suddenly from a rot of the stem at the surface 

 of the ground. This occurs as a rule in dull, cloudy 

 weather among plants kept at too high a temperature, 

 crowded too closely in the beds or not sufficiently ven- 

 tilated. Several kinds of fungi are capable of causing 

 damping oflF, under such conditions. 



Preventive measures are of the first importance. 



