July i, 1918 
True Nature of Spinach-Blight 
5 
ease Investigations of the United States Department of Agriculture. 
The first published reports on these experiments were issued as Bulletin 
No. 1 of the Virginia Truck Experiment Station in September, 1909. * 1 
From a discussion of the symptoms of the diseases studied at that time 
it would appear that the true spinach-blight was included. However, 
there were undoubtedly other diseases of truck crops which resembled 
spinach-blight in appearance, and the results obtained since that time 
would indicate that no distinction was made between them, all being 
classed as malnutrition diseases. 
The work which was begun by Mr. L. L. Harter, of the Bureau of Plant 
Industry, was continued and published as Bulletin 4 of the Virginia 
Truck Experiment Station. 2 While this bulletin gave valuable sugges¬ 
tions for spinach culture, nevertheless it did not solve the spinach-blight 
problem. These data furnished the basis for distinguishing malnutri¬ 
tion diseases, which could be corrected by the use of proper fertilizers and 
lime, from the true spinach-blight, which subsequent experiments have 
shown has little or no relation to the fertilizer and lime content of the soil. 
1 HARTER, h. I*. THE CONTROL OF MALNUTRITION DISEASES OF TRUCK CROPS. Va. Truck Exp. Sta. 
Bill. X. 16 P«, 4 fig. 1909. 
1 - SPINACH TROUBLES AT NORFOLK AND IMPROVEMENT OF TRUCKING SOILS. Va. Truck Exp, Sta. 
But 4, p. 61-80, fig. 18-3a. 19x0. 
