Gardening for Amateurs 



683 



B2 



called Black Scab is different from the 

 former, and more destructive, for it may 

 spoil a whole crop. The Scab is due to a 

 fungus which exists inside the Potato and 

 lives on the food material there ; wrinkled 

 warts are 

 first noticed 

 round the 

 " eyes " ; this 

 becomes a 

 spongy mass, 

 and finally 

 the tuber 

 rots. The 

 spores lie 

 dormant in 

 the soil for 

 at least one 

 season, hence 

 the value of 

 rotation. As 

 a preventive 

 remedy, dust 

 the moist 

 tubers with 

 sulphur and 

 dress the soil 

 which con- 

 tained dis- 

 eased plants with gas-lime. Formalin, 1 Ib. 

 in 15 gallons of water, is useful for sterilis- 

 ing the sets before planting ; spray it over 

 the tubers. 



Tomato and Cucumber. Tomato and 

 Cucumber soil should either be fresh or 

 sterilised ; Sleepy Disease of Tomatoes, 

 where the plants droop and die without 

 apparent cause, can be prevented in this 

 way ; no cure exists. Black Spot, so called 

 from its appearance, and Spot Disease, which 

 attacks the leaves and then spreads to the 

 fruits, can be checked by Bordeaux Mixture, 

 liver of sulphur, and a few proprietary 

 preparations. In a crowded house, how- 

 ever, remove all diseased plants to pre- 

 vent spread of the disease. Cucumbers 

 grown in sterilised soil never suffer from 

 Root Disease, which is caused by a tiny soil 

 pest called the eel worm. 



Pea. Pea Mildew is a fungus which 

 seems to be getting more common ; it is 

 due to bad cultural conditions, and the 

 only remedy is to feed regularly with liquid 



manure. In damp weather or where the 

 plants are grown in a crowded condition, 

 Pea Mould may be noticed ; good cultiva- 

 tion is the best preventive, for it ensures 

 vigorous and sturdy plants. 



Chiefly Vegetable Pests. 



A, Red Spider: Bl and 62- Celery Fly and its grub; C, Caterpillar or grub of the Winter 

 Moth; D1 and D2. Carrot Fly and Maggot: E1 and E2, Onion Fly and Maggot; F, Larva of 



Cabbage Fly. 



DISEASES OF SEEDLINGS AND CUTTINGS 



Seedlings. The seedling state is often 

 the time when a hard fight has to be carried 

 on against all insects and fungi or other 

 pests. One fungoid disease, however, be- 

 longs peculiarly to this stage, i.e. the 

 Damping-off Fungus. Under wrong con- 

 ditions of treatment, such as excess of 

 moisture and want of good ventilation, seed- 

 lings begin to die one by one ; the stem 

 is discoloured at the soil level, and gar- 

 deners say the seedling or cutting has 

 "damped off." The discoloration and 

 death of the plants are due to a fu-iigus, and 

 unless precautions are taken it will soon 

 spread. The germs of this disease lie 

 dormant in the soil for a considerable time, 

 and under suitable conditions they will 

 become active and infest a future crop. 

 There is no cure ; but if good, fresh com- 

 posts are used or the soil sterilised and the 

 best conditions of aeration and humidity en- 

 sured, no trouble need be feared. Plenty of 

 air at suitable times will be the best practice. 



