NEw YoRK AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. 129 
of carnations caused by a fungus belonging to the genus Fusa- 
rium.*§ 
In 1900 the discovery was made that the carnation rust fungus 
is, itself, frequently attacked by a parasitic fungus, Darluca filum. 
This is-a well-known parasite of various rust fungi, but up to this 
time it was not known that it attacks carnation rust. Probably 
the parasite is not a very important factor in the control of rust.” 
Studies made by the Station on carnation stem-rot have revealed 
the fact that there are two distinct diseases passing under this 
name. One is a dry rot caused by a species of Fusarium and the 
other a soft rot caused by a species of Rhizoctonia. Both kinds 
of stem rot are common and destructive. It is believed that the 
discovery of the true cause of stem rot will lead, ultimately, to 
successful methods of controlling it. As yet, only brief accounts 
of the investigations have been published.°° A more complete report 
will appear later. 
CAULIFLOWER. 
Cauliflower, being closely related to cabbage, is subject to most 
of the diseases affecting cabbage. In the work with black rot and 
scft rot of cabbage described on page 126, considerable attention 
was given to these diseases on cauliflower. During four consecu- 
tive years the leaf-pulling treatment for black rot was tested in 
cauliflower fields on Long Island, but the experiments were barren 
of results because of a lack of the disease.°' When the treatment 
was found to be a complete failure on cabbage the experiments on 
cauliflower were abandoned. Other experiments, on the control of 
black rot in cauliflower by spraying the plants with resin-bordeaux 
mixture, were conducted during four years, also. Owing to the 
absence of the disease nothing was learned as to the value of this 
treatment. 
The experiments on cabbage and cauliflower bring out strikingly 
a difficulty often met in experiments on the treatment of plant 
diseases. Frequently it is necessary to carry the experiments 
through several seasons before the disease appears in sufficient 
abundance to test the value of the treatment. 
In the latter part of August, 1899, the newly-formed leaves of 
cauliflower plants throughout eastern Long Island showed black- 
* Bul. 164:219 (1899); same in Rpt. 18:181. 
* Bul. 175 (1900); same in Rpt. 19:55-60. 
° Bot. Gag. 27:129 (1890); Bul. 186:26 (1901); same in Rpt. 19:116. 
“ Bul. 232:62 (1903); same in Rpt. 2r:ro4. 
5 
