184 THE CANAWAX HOKTICULTUKIST. 



leaf. On the Tomato leaf the spots lack the black rotting look which is so" 

 characteristic of the Potato disease. The Tomato leaf is larger and harder, 

 so that instead of putrefying it rather dries up ; the spots themselves look 

 more like the sun-scalds one sees upon the leaves of plasts grown under 

 glass. After diseased Toraatos have been gathered a short time decompo- 

 sition rapidly sets in, and they then harbor an incredible (quantity of fungi. 

 But as these fungi are, as a rule, only such as are foiwid upon almost all 

 decomposing vegetable matter, it is useless to eijiiii^rate them. One 

 species, however, seems to me worthy of special note, as when it appeared 

 Tipon a Tomato the latter underwent very rapid decoHif>osition. The fungu8> 

 is, I believe, an undescnbed sj^ecies of Sphseronema ; it may be thus 

 described : — 



/Sphceronenm lycopersici, n. sp. — Perithecia minute, spherical, arranged 

 somewhat concentincally iipon the surface of diseased Tomatos. Each 

 perithecium surmounted by a dirty flesh -colored globule of spores. Spores 

 minute, cylindrical, or somewhat sausage-shaped, h3'aline, either with or 

 withonS nuclei. On outdoor Tomatos, Clenchwarton, King's Lynn, Oct.^ 

 1880. Perithecia about 150 mk. in diameter. S|X>reslOby2 — 3 mk. 



The diseases of the Tomato to which I have given most attention, how- 

 ever liaTO been those peculiar to fruit gi'own under glass. It is worthy of 

 remark th-at tlie PeronosjX)ra disease does not occur uiider these conditions; 

 at least if it ever does do 80 it is very uncommon. 



The first and most important disease to which I would call attention i» 

 of frequent occurrence, and may be termed for distinction'^s sake the " black 

 spot." It makes its appearance Wisually (but not invariably) upon the- 

 green Tomato as a circumscribed brownish spot of no great size upon th©' 

 crown of the fruit, usually near the remains of the style. As the TomatO' 

 ripens the spot has a whitish hue fi'om the semitranspjirent dead cuticle of 

 the fruit, which is at this time unaffected with any fungus growth, being 

 wmply dead. Specimens of this disease have been submitted to more than 

 one horticultural journal, and pronounced to be " sun-scalds." Tliis, how- 

 ever, they cannot be, for the spots of disease are upon the crown of the 

 fruit, which hangs downwards, so that any sun-scald would be ujwn the 

 base of the fruit, "which is npj>ermost. I have seen numerous specimens 

 in situ, and can therefore speak positively upon this point, as it might be 

 suggested that the primary lesion was due to a burn, and that the fiingus 

 afterwards attached itself to the injured spot. As the Tomato ripens and 

 assumes the beautiful red color of maturity, the spot, which varies in size 

 from 3 to 10 millimetres, aquires a jet-black color. If a section be now 

 made through it, it will be found that this blackness extends inwards 

 towards the centre of the fruit, to a much greater extent than is apparent 

 from the exterior. It is distinctly defined and harder tlian the parenchyma 

 of the fruit. If a portion of this black substance be examined microscopi- 

 cally, it is found to consist of an assemblage of black mycelium compacted 

 pretty closely together, having the appearance of the mycelium of the 

 Dematici or black moulds. Upon the upper sui-face — the black spot — four 

 fungi are found ; one a true black mould, the other three polymorphic 

 states of a Phoma. The black mould may be thus described ; — 



