20 | DrrrctTor’s Report OF THE 
doing an immense amount of damage to the orchards of New 
York as well as in many other states. The disease is not new 
but the injuries resulting from its attack have been thought to 
be due entirely to the sun-scald, so it has escaped the notice of 
workers in this line. | 
The investigation of this disease was undertaken in the spring 
of 1898 and was continued through the present season. It has 
been proven that the cankers are produced by the attack of a 
fungus known as Sphaeropsis malorum Pk., the same that pro- 
duces the black rot of apples, pears and quinces. The experi- 
ments also indicate that the fungus occurs on a number of other 
plants. 
Experiments in treating the disease are not yet complete, but it 
is known that in a majority of instances orchards that have been 
well sprayed with Bordeaux mixture for a number of years and | 
otherwise well taken care of are much freer from canker than or- 
chards that have not received such treatment. 
As a preventive measure we feel warranted in recommending 
that the orchards be put in the best growing condition and then 
as a further preventive that they be sprayed thoroughly with 
Bordeaux mixture, spraying the limbs as well as the foliage and 
fruit; the spraying to be made at the time the trees are ordinarily 
sprayed for apple scab, supplemented by an earlier one given 
about the time the leaf buds begin to unfold. 
DEPARTMENT OF BOTANY. 
Leaf-scorch of sugar beet, cherry, cauliflower and maple.— A 
peculiar disease of sugar beets occurring to a destructive extent 
in some fields in Yates and Ontario counties has been determined 
to have been caused by weather conditions. In early August 
the foliage was suddenly scorched by excessively dry, hot weather. 
Cherries and hard maples in the vicinity of Geneva and cauli- 
flower on Long Island have suffered from the same cause. 
Fruit-disease survey of the Hudson Valley.— A thorough sur- 
vey has been made of the fruit diseases occurring in the Hudson 
