The Sunday telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1914-1927, 1916-05-28
WATERNELONS
THREATENED
BY DISEASE
Known as the Wilt and 1t is a
Serious Handicap in Many
Sections.

WASHINGTON, D. c., May PA
serious disease OF watermelons, known
as the wilt, has for many years been
prevalent in the southern states and
has now extended westward to the
Pacific coast, having been reported
from Oklahoma, Iowa, Indiana, Mis-
souri,, Arizona, Texas, California and
Oregon. In many sections the dis
ease is a serious handicap to the
growing of melons on a large scale.
not only by destroying the growing
crop, but also by preventing the sue
cessful culture Of melons upon the
same field again in succeeding years,
Cause and Symptoms.
Watermelon wilt is caused by fun
, gus which lives in the soil and enters
the roots, plugging up the water-car-
rying vessels and preventing the rise
OF moisture, thus causing the willing
and death OF the plant. The leaves
of affected plants first droop, then
rapidly wilt and soon die, the runner
dying with them. Upon cutting the
main tap root across near the surface
OF the ground It will be found to pre-
sent yellow color in tho wood, max
ing a distinct contrast with the white
color Of the healthy plant. This vel
loving, together with the wilted an
| pearance of the vine, makes the identi-
fication Of the disease easily possible,
and the further fact that a field once
| infected shows the same trouble in
succeeding years in the same or an
extended area is an additional recog-
milton mark. All commercial varieties
OF melons appear to be very suscep-
tible to the disease.
Means of Dissemination.
The disease is spread in a number
OF different ways. a. By particles
OF earth carrying spores OF the fun
sus, which are easily scattered by
the wind, by implements used in Gull
tiva'ing, and by the feet OF men and
work animals or stray stock passing
from one field to another. C2) Bv
infected stable manure. The fungus
lives in the dead vines and the prac-
lice OF cutting hay from watermelon
fields results in some watermelon
| vines being harvested with the hay
and this leads to the presence OF the
causal fungus in the stable. When the
fungus once gains entrance TO the
arnyard, or compost heap, It re-
mains there for years and all the ma
nure taken from such yard is likely
to be infected (3) By drainage
water, flowing from infected to unin-
fected fields.
Means of Control.
There is nothing that can be done
to save field of melons when once
attacked by the wilt. but the disease
may be avoided by the following pre-
cautions:
l. In infected districts, watermel-
ons should never be planted on land
where watermelons have been grown
within ten or twelve years, more or
less, depending on soil conditions, as
experiments have shown that the fun
gus causing the disease is able to live
long period in the ground. AS a
matter OF practical experience, It is
usually possible to secure enough
fresh land, so that an adequate sun
My Of watermelons can be grown in
any largo district without need of re-
course to old fields.
3. Stable manure which has be-
como infected by the use Of melon hay
or refuse containing melon vines
should never DO applied to the water
melon crop. or to land where 1t is de-
sired to plant watermelons later.
3, Fields which have received the
drainage water from infected fields
must DO considered and treated as II
infected, This means that tho far
mer having two fields, one Of which
ia on higher ground than the other,