BEAN ANTHRACNOSE 



MORTIER F. BaRRTJS 

 THE HOST 



Next to the potato and the sweet potato, the bean (considered as a 

 vegetable) is the most important crop grown in this country. Not only 

 are beans grown in practically every home garden, but they are of great 

 commercial importance also. The United States Census Bureau (1913 a) 

 reports the production of dry edible beans grown for commercial pur- 

 poses in this country during 1909 as 11,251,160 bushels, or more than 

 double that of 1899, representing a value of $21,771,482. The Monthly 

 Crop Report of the United States Department of Agriculture (1917: 

 133) estimates the production for 1916 as 12,029,000 bushels; for 1917 it 

 was 18,129,000 bushels, the culture of beans having been stimulated by the 

 demand and by the high prices paid as a result of the war. Since the war 

 there has been a marked reduction in area in the States having a high 

 bean production. Dry beans are a staple crop in New York, Michigan, 

 Colorado, New Mexico, California, and several other States, while string 

 beans are grown extensively in many parts of the country as a truck crop. 

 In northern New York, in Michigan, Colorado, and California, and in 

 southern Canada, the production of garden and field beans for seed has 

 developed into a large and profitable industry. Large areas also are devoted 

 to the production of snap beans for canning. 



Prior to 1899, New York was the leading State in the production of 

 dry edible beans, in 1879 producing 42.4 per cent of the total crop in the 

 United States and in 1889 producing 35.1 per cent. In 1909, however, 

 it produced only about 15 per cent of the total crop (U. S. Census Bureau, 

 1913 a). While production has greatly increased in the other large 

 bean-producing States (table 1) , New York has lagged behind, although 

 it was stirred on somewhat during 1917 and 1918. 1 Low yields resulting 

 from disease and from poor weather conditions inevitably resulted in 

 reduced acreage for 1919. 



1 Data for 1879 and 1889 were obtained from the Eleventh Census; for 1899 and 1909, from the Thirteenth 

 Census; for 1914, from the Monthly Crop Report for 1916; for 1915, 1916, and 1917, from the Monthly 

 Crop Report for 1917; for 1918, from the Monthly Crop Report for 1918; for 1919, from the Monthly Crop 

 Reporter for 1919; for 1920, from the Monthly Crop Reporter for 1920. These references are given under 

 Literature Cited, page 199. 



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