48 Diseases of Greenhouse Crops 



may be removed. Spraying the seedlings with vari- 

 ous fimgicides in a bed v^here damping off has be- 

 come well established will be of little help. 



Control of Insect-Infested Soil. Spraying the 

 soil will be of little value in the control of under- 

 groimd insect pests. Fortunately, however, there 

 are other means of dealing with them. All insect 

 pests may, of course, be controlled by steaming the 

 soil in the benches. 



Cut worms may be controlled by the use of a 

 poisoned bran made as follows: To three ounces of 

 molasses add one gallon of water and sufficient bran 

 to make a fairly stiffened mixture. To this add 

 a teaspoonful of Paris green or arsenic and stir 

 well into a paste. A heaping teaspoonful of the 

 mixture is scattered here and there over the infested 

 bed. The cut worms will be attracted to the sweet- 

 ened bran and after eating it will die from the 

 poison. 



Summer Treatment of Greenhouse Soil 



The greenhouse is rarely used the whole year 

 round. During the summer the house is usually 

 idle one or two months. This is especially true re- 

 garding truck crops, for at that time outdoor prod- 

 ucts put the greenhouse out of cwnpetition. 



It is a common belief that if the soil is allowed 

 to remain dry in the intense heat imdcr glass dur- 

 ing July or August all injurious insects, fimgi and 

 bacteria will be destroyed. To determine this point 



