14 BULLETIN 44, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
monest or only cause of blight, criticised the parasitic theory of the 
disease. The fungus now seems to be generally accepted as the 
commonest cause of the blight of pines in German nurseries,! though 
it is recognized that other factors may also cause blight. Because 
of the confusion arising from the controversy mentioned, the term 
“ schiitte ” has often been made to cover indiscriminately all forms of 
blight. It seems to the writer that the best policy will be to restrict 
the English equivalent term, “ needle-cast,”’ to the damage done by 
Lophodermium pinastri. 
In Germany infection is said to take place between the end of July 
and the middle of September. The first reddening of isolated needles 
occurs in late September. In a very late fall the needles may turn 
brown and mature Lophodermium fruits appear before winter. Or- 
dinarily the disease works very slowly during the fall and winter 
and rapidly in March and April. By May, in severe attacks, 
scarcely a green needle remains. ven with practically all the 
needles killed, the weakened plants are frequently able to resume 
growth at the terminal bud, though diseased trees are less able to sur- 
vive transplanting than those not attacked. In some cases the para- 
site in the infected needles is said to enter the stem and kill it also. 
The juvenile needles formed during the first year persist for a long 
time after death, while needles of the mature sheathed form are shed 
soon after death as a result of the formation of a cork separation 
layer. It is this early shedding of diseased needles which gives rise 
to the name of the disease. Spermatia are first formed on the fallen 
needles. By the end of July mature ascospores appear, capable of 
infecting healthy needles and thus completing the life cycle of the 
parasite. It is not certain that in this country the life history of the 
fungus would be the same as has been described for Germany. Some 
of the confusion concerning etiology that has increased the difficulty 
of separating needle-cast from other troubles can be traced to the fact 
that Ebermayer’s blight, as well as death of roots from early fall 
freezing, may presumably cause the rapid death of the plants in early 
spring. 
In needle-cast and related needle diseases the following characters 
may be expected: 
(1) The first indication of disease in the needles will be the ap- 
pearance of light brownish green spots. These will not be as likely 
as most of the physiological diseases to attack the tips of the needles 
first. 
(2) Ordinarily the needles on any one part of the plant will not all 
die at the same time. 
1 Haack. Der Schiittepilz der Kiefer. Zeitschrift fiir Forst- und Jagdwesen, Jahrg. 43, 
Heft 4, p. 329-357, pl. 4; Heft 5, p. 402-423; Heft 6, p. 481-505, 1 fig., 1911. 
