The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1882-12-13
$50
The Gum Disease.
Rirerside Press.

follows regarding the appearance OF
the gum disease in his lemon orchard:
The gum disease, or rather what l
think it is, for the first time in my
experience, has shown itself in my
orchard. One fine tree (oA lemon
root, seedling) has hundreds OF lem
ons wilting-not growing-and near
ly bare of leaves; indeed the tree is
evidently dying as fast as. it can.
The symptoms are, an eXudaLiOn OF
gum like cherry gum from the body
of the tree at and below the ground;
the roots and stem are spongy and
soft. the bark around the stem at the
ground has become rotten and gone.
Is this the so~called gum disease, or
not? They are growing Oh what We
called washed adobe" soil, or an in.
cline to give sufficient drainage. They
have not been watered this year as
much as usual.
Be good enough to let me know if
there are any preventative measures
that you know of to prevent or cure
it when it is in its incipient stage, tor
notice some other trees are begin
ming to exude gum and look sickly.
AS rule our citrus trees are not
looking as healthy as when you were
last up our valley, not more scaley,
but blacker. l am sometimes inclin.
ed TO attribute it to the excessive
and unusually toggy weather we had
the past summer. What is your
opinion?
AS this letter and the answer there
10 may be of public interest to fruit
growers, we take the liberty OF an
swering through the columns OF the
Press and Hoyticultwist.
Mr.. Moore is right in assuming
that this is case of what is known
as the gum disease. Had the disease
appeared on an orange tree we should
have advised proper treatment 10
save the Tree, but as it is Seeding
lemon the best aud most economical
treatment would be 10 remove the
tree from the orchard and make fire.
wood OF it. The kind Of soil des-
Observation-Disclosures the worst soil in
the State for the lemon, and orange
too, Tor that matter. The orange
tree, however. can stand that kind Of
soil very well, but the lemon tre@
= IS ~ = stls ~
diseased stock, should never be plant
cd in adobe soil In tact a seeding
lemon should not be planted at all
in orchard form. There are some
fine seeding lemons Ill this State,
but as a rule an orchard of seeding
lemon trees will produce an interior
fruit, and sometimes it will be very
large and coarse. There are excep-
tons 10 this rule, but the rule Is
good one 10 remember ne> ertheless.
A man who has seeding Lemon Or
chard should dig up the trees as fast
as they show signs OF decay and gum
disease around The roofs. aud If he
desires to keep up the lemon orchard
replace the diseased tree with bud
ded lemon on orange stock. The
case can be put with perfect safety
little stronger even than this. a man
who has a seeding lemon orchard
would find it a good business invest
ment to remove all the trees that
produce an inferior lruit. even though
such trees show no sigus OF decay,
and fill the vacancies With lemon
trees OF superior varieties budded on
orange stock. And still further, il
the orchard is located on an adobe
soil the ground can be better used
tor some other purpose. A clayty
loan is good, as has been proven
here at Riverside, but an adobe soil
is not suited to citrus trees.
The presence Of the black fungus
on lhe trees is occasioned by the Sc
we're togs to certain extent. The
fungus Is caused by the presence OF
the black scale. Get force pump,
such as is used at San j ose for spray
ing the trees tor insect pests, and
thoroughly wash the trees with So
luton of whale oil soap and water,
in the proportion of one pound OF
soap 10 one gallon OF water, applied
al temperature Of 1870 degrees, and
it will remove all the scale and the
black fungus will also disappear grad
ually. An orange tree covered with
scale and black fungus can no more
be healthy than can cow covered
with lice. The scale will not spread
as rapidly or do as much hurt on a
thrifty tree as on tree that has been
stunted by lack CT walter or by toor
cultivation. Good cultivation, enough
water TO supply the wants ct The
tlee, ana ,he killing OF The STALE with
IvhaI. nil huap wash will make