THE PHYSIOLOGY AND DEVELOPMENT OF SOME 



ANTHRACNOSES' 



L 



Claude Wilbur Edgerton 



(with seventeen tigures and plate xi) 



The group of fungi commonly known as the anthracnoses, includ- 

 ing the genera Gloeosporium and Colletotrichum, has received much 

 attention from botanists during the past few years. It has been 

 worked from the economic and scientific standpoints, the former being 

 a very important aspect. Many of our most important diseases of 

 orchard, farm, and garden crops are due to some member of these 

 genera, the annual loss to the country reaching into miiUons of dollars. 

 The bitter rot fungus alone in 1900 cost the apple growers of this 

 country $10,000,000 or more (46). The bean anthracnose, due to 

 Colletotrichum lindemitthianum, sometimes causes almost a total 

 loss of the bean crop, and other members of the group cause losses in 

 proportion. In some sections certain crops have ceased to be raised on 



account of the ravages of these fungi. 



From the scientific standpoint the group is interesting on account of 

 the pecuhar polymorphic Hfe-histor}^ of the different members. Until 

 fifteen or twenty years ago, the anthracnoses were known only m the 

 conidial stage. Previous workers were mostly systematists who did 

 little more than describe in a few lines the conidial fructifications; 



found 



group 



Since 



The history of previous work is familiar to most mycologists 

 through recent papers, and references to this will only be made m 

 connection with the discussion of the different forms. 



mit the use of the word anthracnose 



ouiue wouiu iimiL lue u^c ui lih- wv^^v^ ^ — 



having an ascigeral stage, as in the genus GlomereUa; but I prefer 

 to use it, as commonly used, for all fungi hadng a Gloeosponum-hkfe 

 conidial stage. 



' Contribution from the Department of Botany, CorneU University, No. 125. 



[Botanical Gaaette, vol. 45 



367] 



