462 
Journal of Agricultural Research 
Vol. XXVI, No. 10 
ground which gives good evidence that a Fusarium was present. A 
species of Fusarium was isolated, and a single inoculation of 20 seeds in 
one pot of sterile soil was made. All of the plants became infected in 
eight weeks. The larger part of Schikorra’s paper is devoted to studies of 
the physiology of this organism, which he regards as identical with Van 
Halks- fungus. Fortunately we have a good description by Appel and 
Wollenweber ( 1) of the fungus with which Van Hall and Schikorra worked. 
They have included the organism in their new species, F. falcatum . 
Later Wollenweber (14) states, apparently upon the evidence of his own 
experimental work which is not described, that “more than one species, 
differing both in size of conidia and color of conidial mass may cause the 
St. John’s disease of the garden pea.” This disease has since been re¬ 
ported in Europe by Gueguen (7) in France, and by Mortensen et. al. (10) 
in Denmark. 
More recently Turesson (13) in Sweden has reported a disease of peas 
caused by Fusarium viticola upon a basis of evidence that appears to be 
adequate. The disease occurred at the plant-breeding station at Svalov 
after a period of unfavorable weather. The trouble began at the neck of 
the root, often as a dark red discoloration, and spread up and down until 
in many cases the plant wilted. Fusarium viticola was isolated, and 
plants were inoculated in several ways with varying success. Soil inoc¬ 
ulation always gave positive results. Varieties of peas seemed to show 
considerable variation in susceptibility to infection. 
In American literature there are several notes referring to species of 
Fusarium associated with diseased peas (5, p. 202), though proof of the 
pathogenicity of the fungus is lacking in all but a single case. In 1911 
Gifford (6, p. 151) makes the unsupported statement that he has found a 
disease of peas caused by Fusarium. Lewis (9) reports having isolated F. 
orthoceras, as determined by Wollenweber, from a diseased pea plant. In 
1913 Wollenweber (14) describes F. redolens as a “vascular parasite, 
cause of wilt and foot disease of Pisum sativum, ” on the basis of his own 
work, which is not described. In the following year Wollenweber (13) 
describes F. oxysporum as occurring on Pisum , though he evidently does 
not intend to state that it is a parasite. Finally, Bisby (2) notes a dis¬ 
ease of peas caused by a species of Fusarium in Minnesota, and later 
(3, pp. 19-20) he reports having found one species belonging to the sec¬ 
tion Martiella of that genus particularly pathogenic. The writer has 
received a culture of this fungus from Doctor Bisby, and finds it identical 
with the organism described in this paper. 
THE FUNGUS 
DESCRIPTION. 
The following description of Fusarium martii App. and Wr. var. pisi 
(n. var.) is made from the fungus growing upon culture media, since it 
has never been observed to fruit on the plants that it infests. 
Aerial mycelium short, white or grayish, sometimes absent when spores 
are abundant. Pseudopionnotes or sporodochia methyl prussian, zinc, or 
invisible green, sometimes avellaneous when young. Macroconidia 
mostly 3-septate, 27-40 x 5-4.5 microns, nearly uniform in diameter, 
typically more curved toward the apex; microconidia present, not 
abundant. Chlamydospores present in mycelium and in older spores; 
