Irish Blight.

Star (Christchurch), Volume LXVI, Issue 20298, 7 May 1934, Page 9

Irish Blight.

A Garden Corner

POTATO BLIGHT is the name applied when this plant suffers an infection of the fungus disease so harmful to the tuber. Fungus spores are really the means of life, connecting one stage with another, and are comparable with the seeds from garden plants. Thefee potato fungus spores are so minute that 800 of them in a line would not exceed one inch. Where the infection is at all bad, and given favourable conditions, the spread of the disease is rapid. They must have moisture to survive, and night dews are quite sufficient for the purpose. This is why we find the blight most harmful in damp seasons. Blown about by the wind, the spores settle, and find ample sustenance from the potato leaves. Although they settle on other plants, of course, on only the potato can they germinate and grow. Their entry into the plant causes decay of the tissues, and whether it be on the leaves, stem or tubers, the result iif the same, by blocking the cells and preventing the formation of starchy matter. Black spots on the leaves grow into dead, evil-smelling haulms, and the crop is ruined or seriously impaired. It may therefore fittingly be termed a parasite. T. D. LENNIE. li=rrrr = ' ~=~