276 
SPICES 
CHAP. 
in their distribution, they have the power in suitable 
surroundings to increase in enormous quantities. Mr. 
Barber in his report (published in Planting Opinion^ 
1903, p. 619) says : “I have never seen such a remark- 
able series of tumours in plant tissues as those lately 
met with in the infected plants of the Wynaad.” When 
the tumour decays it is not easy to detect the remains 
of the eel-worms, but some at least of the cankers 
have been proved to be due to eel-worms. In one of 
the plain gardens near Calicut “ there had been twenty 
vines. Five died last year, five are moribund, while the 
remaining ten are attacked.” ‘‘ It would be wise, when 
an attack of this sort is met with, to carefully collect all 
the nodules formed on the roots and underground stems 
and to burn them. The hole should on no account be 
planted again for many years.” To get rid of the pest 
in such soil, Mr. Barber suggests the planting of the 
goat weed or white weed [Ageratum conyzoides). 
This universal weed, generally held in horror by planters, 
is very attractive to the eel-worm. Planted in the 
abandoned hole it will attract the eel-worms to its 
roots, and after a time it can be pulled up and burnt. 
By repeating this process the eel-worms might be 
cleared out. 
In 1903 Mr. Barber devoted a fortnight to investigat- 
ing the cause of disease in the pepper plantations of 
the South Wynaad. After some years of phenomenal 
success many of the vines were found to be dying out. 
A number of diseases were met with, but there was no 
one universally found. The plants were extremely 
liable to cankerous growths, and in some cases severe 
attacks of eel- worms were met with. In certain vines 
a hyphal infestation was found throughout the fibro- 
vascular bundles, but the presence of the fungus did 
not appear to have any relation to the relative sickness 
of the vines. 
In his report [Planting Opinion, 1903, p. 618) he 
goes more fully into the three diseases noted, viz. 
canker, eel-worm, and hyphae in the vessels. 
