Republican farmer., 1919-10-03
POTATO WART DISEASE CAME
 FROM EUROPE
Federal and State Depart ments Are Cooperating
 For Its Education.

The Plant Disease Survey of the United States Department Of AsrI culture and the Connecticut State Board of Agriculture cooperating, wish to warn pototo growers to be on on the alert for the European wart disease.
 Those who have been growing po- tatoes in the rast few years have per haps been struck with the increase in potato troubles. The poor afflicted spud has some dozen or more fun gous troubles, not to mention the insects Here comes a new one!
 In September, 1918, a diseased po- tato was sent by a lady from High land. Pa, to Prof. J. G. Sanders of the Pennsylvania Department of Az riculture and he at once recognized the importance of immediate inVestt- gation. He took the diseased potato to Washington and the United States Department of Agriculture pronounce ed the scourge the serious European wart disease. A hasty survey of the situation showed that it was largely confined to little backyard gardens of the anthracite coal miners in a re- stricted region in Pennsylvania.
  ed in America? It is believed it was imported from Europe, possibly from England or Ireland. In 1912 the Federal Horticultural Board, in hope of keeping the disease out of America prohibited the importation of pota- toes from those countries where the disease was known to exist. Before the embargo went into effect. how ever, several million bushels of the crop of 1911 had been brought into this country from Europe and distri- buted throughout the East. Possibly the potato embargo of 1912 was an act of locking the door after the horse was stolen.
 What does potato-wart look like :? When small, the growths on the sur face of the potato tuber resemble warts; when larger the outgrowth re- minds one of a small, more or less spongy caulihower, light brown in color, later becoming dark or even black. Finally the whole diseased potato may disintegrate into a black, crumbly, decayed mass.
 When the Department of Agricul- ture agents were searching for the | disease in Pennsylvania, the bewild- cred coal miners were much concern i ed, thinking that this might be the 1 cause of the dreaded flu" epidemic then raging. One Irish lady, with i characteristic sense of humor, show ed all her neighbors one of her large diseased potatoes a new variety 1 of caulif1ower which grew under ground.
 The disease Is fungous disease and affects the potato, only; a person 1 Jr {r hn least, but the chances are that he | wouldn't, for the warty outgrowths are ordinarily cut off in peeHng. In fact, in the infected backyard gardens | in Pennsylvania, the worst spots were | often right by the back door, where | the potato peelings had been thrown l out to the chickens. If the peelings | had been cooked first, the disease would of course have been killed and the potato peelings at the same time made more digestible.
 What effect has the disease the potato plant? Sometimes the warty outgrowths appear on the stems above ground, but generally the sole effect is on the tubers, in severe cases causing them to turn into a black crumb1y, decayed mass. The crop 1T some of the small gardens in Penn sy1vania was practically a total loss While the vines might appear fairly healthy and promising above ground
 the disease might exist and be de
 tected only at digging time.
 How is the wart disease to be pre-
 vented? It is easier to prevent thar it is to control. If 1t once gets into z
 field it is hard to eradicate There
 fore the United States Departmen l of Agriculture, through the Plan | Disease Survey and other cooperating . organizations all over the country are cooperating in an effort to f1nt the disease If 1t Is present.
 Remember that the outgrowth
 when young are wart-like, or nk'
 small, spongy caulidowers attached to the potato tubers. Don't mistake the small round, solid little tuberi
 which sometimes gEow out from a DO tato, especially from scabby or badl,