244 Coco-nuts The Consols of the East 



were dead on the side affected." Beetles which 

 were at first considered to be the cause of the 

 disease were found to bore into the stem only 

 after the tree was dead. This is mentioned 

 in Watt's " Economic Products of India," 

 where we are told that the beetle caused a 

 dark red juice to ooze from the trunk. A bad 

 case occurred in Java, where a batch of some 

 5,000 palms were attacked, and 1,000 died, so 

 the disease can give real trouble at times. 



LEAF DISEASE. 



With leaf disease it would appear that the 

 leaf, succumbing to the numerous drains upon 

 its resources, falls to the ground before the 

 mycelium has attained the utmost limit of 

 its development ; for if a leaf that has fallen 

 on a dry spot be placed in a moist chamber, 

 a multitude of pustules bearing conidia will be 

 produced within forty-eight hours ; while if a 

 leaf that has fallen in a damp place, w r here it 

 is shaded from the effects of the sun, be 

 examined, large numbers of spores can be 

 seen to be given off, thus showing that the 

 mycelium is capable of further growth after 

 the leaflet has fallen to the ground. The 

 spread of the disease appears to be influenced 

 by the age and condition of the plants, and as 

 with the root disease, improved cultural methods 

 are of the highest importance in checking it 

 from spreading, if not in actually curing the 

 disease. 



