CURRANT 



CURRANT 



921 



the white maggots can be detected. Goose- 

 berries are sometimes injured but far less fre- 

 quently than black and red currants. The 

 only treatment which has given any results is 

 the laborious one of removing about 3 inches 

 of the soil from beneath bushes which are 

 known to have been infested, and replacing 

 this with fresh soil. That which was removed 

 must be treated in some way, so that the con- 

 tained puparia may be destroyed. This may 

 be done either by throwing it into a pond or by 

 burying it deeply in the earth. 



Currant worm or imported currant sawfly 

 (Pteronus ribesii). By far the best known of all 

 the insects that injure currants and goose- 

 berries, is the "currant worm." The black- 

 spotted dark green false caterpillars of this 

 insect may unfortunately be found in almost 

 every plantation of currants or gooseberries, 

 every year in almost all parts of America 

 where these fruits are grown. The white eggs 

 are laid in rows along the ribs of the leaf on 

 the lower side, toward the end of May. From 

 these the young larvaB hatch and soon make 

 their presence known by the small holes they 

 eat through the leaves. Unless promptly de- 

 stroyed, they will soon strip the bushes of their 

 leaves, thus weakening them considerably so 

 as to prevent the fruit from ripening the first 

 year, and also reducing the quality of the crop 

 of the following season. There are at least two 

 broods in a season in most places; the first 

 appears just as the leaves are attaining full 

 growth, and the second just as the fruit is 

 ripening. The perfect insect is a four-winged 

 fly which may be seen flying about the bushes 

 early in spring. The male is blackish, with yel- 

 low legs and of about the same size as a house- 

 fly, but with a more slender body. The female 

 is larger and has the body as well as the legs 

 yellow. For the first brood a weak mixture of 

 libs. p ar j s green^ O ne ounce to ten gallons of water, 

 cutting. ma y be sprayed over the bushes, or a dry mix- 

 '' ture, one ounce to six pounds of flour, may be 

 dusted over the foliage after a shower or when the 

 leaves are damp with dew. For the second brood 

 paris green must not be used, but white hellebore; or 

 hellebore may be used for first brood, but it is necessary 

 to kill quickly. This is dusted on as a dry powder, or a 

 decoction, one ounce to two gallons of water, may be 

 sprayed over the bushes. It is, of course, far better to 

 treat the first brood thoroughly, to reduce the number 

 of females which lay eggs for the second brood. 



Oyster-shell scale (Lepidosaphes ulmi). Several kinds 

 of scale insects attack currants. These plants seem to 

 be particularly susceptible to the attacks of the well- 

 known oyster-shell scale of the apple, and the San Jose" 

 scale. In neglected plantations these injurious insects 

 increase rapidly, and a great deal of injury results to 

 the bushes. The remedies for scale insects are direct 

 treatment for the destruction of the infesting insect, 

 and preventive measures, such as the invigoration of 

 the bush by 

 special culture 

 and pruning, 

 to enable it to 

 throw off or 

 outgrow in- 

 jury. Infested 

 plantations 

 should be cul- 

 tivated and 

 fertilized early 



in the season, 1156. To illustrate the pruning of a currant 



and all unne- bush. The old cane, a, is to be cut away. The 

 cessary wood straight new canes at left are to remain. 



should be pruned out. As direct remedies, spraying 

 the bushes at the time the young scale insects first 

 appear in June with kerosene emulsion or whale-oil 

 soap, or spraying in autumn before the hard weather 

 of winter sets in with a simple whitewash made with 

 one pound of lime in each gallon of water, give the 

 best results. Two coats of the whitewash should be 

 applied, the second one immediately after the first ia 

 dry. In putting on two thin coats of the wash instead 

 of one thick one, far better results have been secured. 

 For the San Jose" scale, the lime-and-sulfur wash is 

 necessary, and must be repeated every year. 



Diseases of the currant. 



The currant is affected by very few diseases. The 

 only ones that do much injury are the following: 



Leaf-spot, rust (Septoria ribis) . The leaf -spot fungus 

 affects black, red and white currants, causing the leaves 

 to fall pre- 

 maturely, and 

 thus weaken- 

 ing the bushes. 

 This disease is 

 first noticed 

 about mid- 

 summer, when 

 small brownish 

 spots appear 

 on the leaves. 

 These often become 

 so numerous that 

 they affect a large 

 part of the foliage, 

 soon causing the 

 leaves to fall. As the 

 disease often appears 

 before the fruit is 

 picked, it is difficult 

 to control it if the 

 bushes are not 

 sprayed previously. 

 By using the am- 

 moniacal copper car- 

 bonate the bushes 

 may be sprayed a 

 week or two before 

 it is expected, with- 

 out discoloring the 

 fruit, giving a second 

 application, if neces- 

 sary. As soon as the 

 fruit is picked, the 

 bushes should be 1157. Tree-form training of currant, 

 thoroughly sprayed 



with bordeaux mixture. Experiments have shown that 

 this disease can be controlled by spraying. 



Currant anthracnose (Glceosporium ribis). This dis- 

 ease, which may be mistaken for the leaf-spot, affects 

 different parts of the bush, including the leaves, leaf- 

 stalks, young branches, fruit and fruit-stalks. On the 

 leaves it is made evident during the month of June 

 by the small brown spots which are usually smaller 

 than those made by the leaf-spot fungus. The lower 

 leaves are affected first, and finally the upper ones. 

 They turn yellow and gradually fall to the ground, and 

 when the disease is bad the bushes are defoliated before 

 their time. On the petioles or leaf-stalks, the disease 

 causes slightly sunken spots. The fruit is affected with 

 roundish black spots which are more easily seen when 

 the fruit is green. On the young wood the diseased 

 areas are light in color and are not so noticeable. The 

 wood is not nearly so much injured by the disease as 

 the leaves. The spores which spread this disease are 

 formed in pustules, the majority of which are under the 

 upper epidermis of the leaf. Where the spores are to 

 appear, the surface of the leaf is raised and blackened 



