296 



THE GARDEN AND FIELD. 



December, 19 1 3 



Some Diseases of the Rose. 



Some three or four hundred different 

 species of fungi are recorded in books 

 as attacking the roses of different spec- 

 ies: but, fortunately, only four of 

 them cause serious trouble and an- 

 xiety to the rose grower. The diseases 

 they produce are too well known, at 

 least by name, to every rose grower ; but 

 possibly the symptoms are not quite so 

 well known. 



What is Disease? — Perhaps it is nec- 

 essary to point out that the fungus is 

 not the disease, but its attack sets up a 

 condition of disease by (1) crippling 

 the foliage and in other ways interfering 

 with the normal performance of the 

 life-work of the plant, (2) robbing the 

 plant of food intended for its own use 

 and needed for its own development, 

 and (3) forming poisons which destroy 

 or damage little or much of the host's 

 tissures. It is quite clear that wrong 

 method of cultivation, i.e., failure to 

 provide the proper environment for the 



I HOPE YOU WILL PUBLISH/ THIS 

 LETTER, SO THAT OTHERS MAY 

 BENEFIT BY CLEMENTS TONIC." 

 (Adelaide Series No. 9). 



Mrs. Marion Lamb, of Dale Street, 

 Port Adelaide, S.A., writes this, 

 11/10/'12. In this letter the reader 

 will see what horrors of iU-health 

 comes to those who are afflicted with 

 dyspepsia. They will also see what a 

 remarkable medicine Clements Tonic is 

 for its relief. 



•' CLEMENTS TONIC, LTD. 



" Two years ago I was ill with dys- 

 jiepsia. In spite of the doctor's atten- 

 tion I had the same int/cnse discomfort 

 DAY AFTER DAY, AND MY HEAD 

 WAS FIT TO BURST WITH A CON- 

 TINUOUS PAIN IN THE TEMPLE. At 

 times I would be so dizzy it seemed 

 as if the very ground was snatchejd 

 from beneath my feet. OH ! WHAT A 

 MISERABLE EXISTENCE I HAD DUR- 

 ING THAT 18 MONTHS. Friends look- 

 ed on with sympathy, yet qoiite help- 

 less, until ONE FRIEND PURCHASED 

 A BOTTLE OF CLEMENTS TONIC for 

 me, and I got happy relief. An eig'ht 

 weeks' course rositored me to good 

 health. I hope you will pu?)lish this 

 letter so that others may benefit. 



(Signed) MARION LAMB " 



Indifjestion and Dyspepsia are two 

 common ailments. Improper food and 

 too much meat diet often causes them. 

 CLEMENTS I'ONIC strengthens the di- 

 gestive powers, gives good appetite, 

 ••egulates the bowels, tones the liver 

 and kidneys,- and creates health. Get 

 it and use it. 'It is the KING OF 

 TONlCS. All Chemists and Stores sell 

 It.— Advt. 



plant, will also cause disease ; but there 

 is one great and important difference be- 

 tween diseases due to the attacks of 

 fungi and those solely due to imperfect- 

 ions in an inanimate environment, and 

 it lies in the contagious character of the 

 former. 



Dissemination of Disease. — Canker 

 is as catching as measles, rust as in- 

 fectious as whooping cough, black 

 spot as contagious as smallpox, and 

 mildew as catching as a cold. Like 

 these human diseases, those of the 

 plant may pass over individuals, and 

 even whole races may be compara- 

 tively immune. Like them, too, the 

 condition of the prospective victim 

 and the nature of its environment, 

 which so much determine his con- 

 dition, to a great extent determine 

 whether or not the plant shall suc- 

 cumb to their attacks. 



The Value of Sturdy Plants. — If 

 one wishes to keep a plant free from 

 disease, one must keep it in health, 

 which is to say, plants really healthy 

 rarely (not never) fall victims to the 

 attacks of fungi. The first principle, 

 then, is to see to it that our plants 

 are grown so as to be sturdy and 

 strong; open to the light and air and 

 sheltered from cold draughts, but not 

 in a closed-in space so that air has 

 no free circulation; in soil well drained 

 and sweet, moist, but not so as to 

 encourage the development of sappy 

 growth; rich in plant foods, but not 

 overrich in nitrogenous matter. 



Prevention Better than Cure. — The 

 next point to remember in dealing 

 with diseases caused by fungi is that 

 when once damage has been done, 

 say, to a leaf, actual cure is impos- 

 sible, i.e., the particular leaf damaged 

 cannot be repaired, though the plant 

 may develop new foliage in its place. 

 So all our efforts must be, when once 

 the attack has begun, towards preven- 

 tion of its spread. Thus we come to 

 the bedrock fact "Prevention is better 

 than cure," and may consider what 

 preventive measures to adopt in 

 dealing with these four diseases, 

 beginning with the most virulent. 



Mildew. — The fungus giving the 

 mildewed appearance grows outside 

 the plant, merely sending suckers 

 into it to obtain nourishment. Hence 

 its presence is quite evident, and it 

 may be detected by careful observa- 

 tion at its first onset. It a'ttacks all 

 the growing parts, causing the leaves 

 to become curled and incapable of 

 performing their functions. Shoots 

 and buds are also attacked. The 

 l)owdcry appearance of the mildewed 



leaves is due to the presence of 

 myriads of spores, each capable of 

 reproducing the fungus in a fresh 

 centre. As the fungus is itself on the 

 outside of the plant, it may be killed 

 by suitable applications, and either 

 plentiful dusting with flowers of sul- 

 phur while the leaves are damp with 

 dew or spraying with sulphide of 

 potassium (liver of sulphur) at the 

 rate of 1 oz. to 2 gallons of water. 

 It is important to note that mildew 

 is always most virulent when tSe 

 roses have received a check. Good 

 drainage, combined with a dust 

 mulch formed by a hoe, will do much 

 towards avoiding atack, and at the 

 same time, where mildew is prevalent, 

 choice may be made of those varieties 

 which, in the particular district, resist 

 the attacks of mjldew best. Probably 

 no varieties are perfectly immune, 

 but some are less prone to attack or 

 suffer less from it when it comes than 

 others. — "The Garden." 



♦ 



Layering Carnations. 



Carnations are being layered this 

 month. The operation is quite an easy 

 one. Cut away all the old flower stems 

 first. These are no use to you. Next 

 scrape the surface soil aWay from the 

 base of the plant. This you do to allow 

 the stems to spread and bend down more 

 easily. Lay each section of the plant 

 out in as direct a line as possible, mak- 

 ing the crown the hub of the wheel. 

 If the ground is light and sandy, no new 

 soil need be brought to help in the root- 

 ing of the carnations; but if it is heavy, 

 it will be necessary to bring some light 

 material to lay the shoots in when you 

 have made a cut at the point where you 

 desire the new roots to form. 



The light sandy soil permits a freer 

 rooting than a medium that is heavier. 

 Bend the shoots into position, and build 

 the soU up underneath anything that 

 cannot be brought down with ease. We 

 do not mean that you should bank up 

 twelve inches of earth to catch a shoot 

 that is high up on some old dry stem. 

 Tile liuilding up should never be more 

 than a few inches at most. The elevat- 

 ed pieces must be left alc5ne if it is 

 not possible to bring tliem down by an 

 easy bending! It will not do to break 

 the growths in the process of layering. 

 The idea is to leaye the shoot attached 

 to the parent plant, from which it will 

 draw sustenance while the portion 

 where the cut is made sets up a rooting 

 on its own. 



