GINSENG AND GOLDENSEAL CROWERS' HANDBOOK BY. J. H. KOEHLER CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY Bequest of HERBERT HICE WHETZEL PLANT PATHOLOGY Cornell University Library inseng and goldenseal growers’ handbook GINSENG AND GOLDENSEAL GROWERS’ HANDBOOK BY J. H. KOEHLER COPYRIGHT I9I2 BY J. H. KOEHLER PUBLISHED IN THE GERMAN AND IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE By J. H. KOEHLER, -WAUSAU, WIS, ILLUSTRATED WAUSAU, WISCONSIN 1912 PaUL FP. CTOLZE, BLANABOOK MPR. WAUSAU, WI8. INTRODUCTION Owing to the incompleteness of all existing literature on the cultivation and marketing of ginseng and goldenseal, the writer has practically been forced to the preparation of this handbook. The flood of inquiries that has come to him has revealed the popular interest in this most fascinating and intensive form of gardening and has compelled him to recognize the demand for a practical guide to ginseng growing. To answer by personal letter the almost innumerable ques- tions that come to him in the course of the mail is impracticable, not to say impossible; at the same time all these questions should be answered, to the end of preventing misadventures and failures in ginseng growing and of keeping the cultivation of this profita- ble plant out of the hands of reckless and unscrupulous exploiters. Nearly all of the literature on ginseng culture now availa- ble is notably lacking in a clear statement of the various diseases and plagues by which the ginseng plant is sometimes attacked. To this particular feature the writer has given especial attention and has attempted to make his statements understandable to the amateur. In fact, throughout, he has tried to hold the needs of the novice and amateur constantly in mind. The writer became interested in the habits of the wild gin- seng plant in his childhood, and ever since then—a period of some thirty years or more—he has been almost continuously engaged in the study and growing of ginseng. His experience in growing ginseng on a commercial scale, however, began in 1900. His ef- IV. fort in the preparation of this book has been to give the reader the benefit, at every point, of his own experience and observation and of his scientific studies and researches. The writer is so largely indebted to many scientific writers and authorities that he feels that his labors have been more those of an editor and compiler than of a writer. This observation ap- plies especially to that portion of the book dealing with the diseases of the ginseng plant. A cheerful and grateful acknowledgment of these authorities has been made wherever they are quoted. Sincerely, J. H. KOEHLER, Wausau, Wis. TABLE OF CONTENTS. Pace PUISCONY sce ccnc ares skaeescsnierse ra seee anaes ihvouws care bose p8iueea vacus eben Hine 1 ~ Characters of Ginseng. Botanical description.............. 4 Popuilardeseription is, saccsiadcascdudoees ote kunveuavesatdeaieoetews 4 Natural home of the plant ...........c.cccccececeesce saceceeeees 6 its Uses and Medicinal Properties of Ginseng......................0. 8 An original proving of the drug........c..ceecccceeeeceeeee eens 9 Ginseng a home remedy........... cece cccececeuceeccecea seceeness 12 Market and its Commercial Value......................ccceecesee scenes 15 Statistics showing supply and demand...............ceeceeee 16 History of its ;Cultare:c.oi0.50 cescdesescoc decane scene cee daaencacesetavens 20 Gitte ose ae cer cota ee cali cee te Sa nse oe elmo maieg oede nenaeaeeaanE eae 25 Soils#best"ada pted 4..5...ae.se sinc scetssieias cond ioeesateisessse sue 27 Preparing’ the SSO. ..cccascdesdeccdesece stuceseacavesaracevevce¥es 27 IN Ortili Zim ees anhorer ase cen sac ensea cisco h ethees ae Oeela ueac eee 29 Maki nosed Srecescrcr airs sse loser ccecoues sae ceeesaksanenuset aaseyeuss 30 Wihen to plamticses.c2k ive ode cave ctceces podev cee dues soldesisaveasneede 32 Plant SCCG veces cocedemeecin ts? ceeiy oy So cereler et penedesleveweme nantes 33 Pam timGsrOOts ie veces csecec cs sae voce ee ote edb dalek cows suawaven seers neues 34 Sad inerert are eter eset sate cas occ ence poeaes nee atten orem a caieemossler var 36 Natural shade............. hacs ca diade duce secu os cuaeGasears eeareaeees 37 SUMMeYr WOPK teccseivec ce dou coag tec ractecsssdebscoetweeaueacieteet ess 38 Watering plants....... re reer eer es 38 Harvesting Seed ssrscscesiccvaeesestacce snes fucss sees seusrcosecsnerss 38 Garin forseedearesr ccc scents sate ors sects cece tsuscesezesenoeseeres 38 Stratifving seed ssvce cece sscevsctecsvscccsnececcnsesrasvarssetceyes 39 Digging matured roots.........cccccecceseceeeecesenssseneeeeeeees 41 Clesnine rOCtS ic ss cee rian eseseccsescccacs cuss uvevswcsrsenacessecseraues 41 DEV INGeTrOOtSerrscce terse ccct sare sten notes Sara ecrerase wens acesactesceets 42 VI. Shipping dry roots: secs cicdscsscessossesassssseccnscwsaeseresseeesae 43 Shrinkage ‘in: drying sc icic. seeesooseacesensstvassesdevetecvonesses 43 Cost:Of production iicssscasteessste dee dons ducecssousceeese rere seenee 45 Cost of starting a garden..........ccccccesseccee caves ceneeeeeeees 45 Protitis sires es oe ae NE LEE ED 46 AS smal lipard On :casecccccecceresteas eae aie chee aoe eeeeeoe 48 How to grow good Roots. Removal of seed buds.................. 50 Diseases of Ginseng); Jicccrec ences tence deus cose enie eee eae oes 52 Key to some Ginseng Diseases..............0cccccccec cet eeeceeneceneneees 56 Fungus and Bacterial Diseases of Gimseng..............::.0.cceeees . 56 The Alternaria Bligh Ge ci sncancrsars nicest aes Aeaeaiet ie: Seamer 60 History...... Se ae den ocd anon eein ASE GSTS HOE UE ene eee eee 61 Symptoms of the disease..........cccccccceceseseseeeeececeseecees 63 Cause: of the: disease vs... sccsca5s3 sis eee aes eee eee eeeesees 64 Life history of the parasite...........c.cccecceeeceeseeneneesenees 65 Ecology of the disease .........ccceccscsccseseeevaceccscseeseees .. 67 Control le oher ee ica asec ee enna eaen ca ere eee eee gee 69 Damping off of Seedlings................ccccccccececececensceeceeeeeseeeens 16 Rhizoctonia Rot of Stems and Roots................cccceeeeeeeee Bees 7 Root: Rots of Ginsene jis. ev ccetawscideuesecee snde shee as eaneoiee erence seas 79 MR eS walter ce inet eee es stone eee see eee ero on eee ee eects 80 Black cr oticds cues ccc suse tie tac oot aaee ee eee 82 OLG oor Ob sitar ae cma tae eatery aeueme nate mech Merecmeaak ena ene ences 84 Kind orered) rote svcci.cscacsascvees dactnet nec cas cuss tae peso rere es 86 GOW TOG eg see cecenstid ie ose sae BREE 87 Nematode-root) gall vc saieaivesaeenreceecnceseraeenees 88 End Rot, Fiber Rot, Rust or Scab.........0 ccccccececcee cee eeeeeceeeee 91 History of the: diseases. scscssccccse set cous sek nes oe tenet eee 91 Economic importance.........c.ccceeecseeseeeeerecteeenseseeseeeens 92 SyMptOMS vis -ccacosase case tetesemeereomeesneeree TIRE eee 93 MtiolO@y2Feeccescessazsceesees eee Fea ca TRU SES ERR Se case eae ER 93 Effect of the disease on the plant...........cc.cccesececeeeeeeeee 95 COnlra Pacatee cree ce nen oe soccer one oan sew useitonee son areal nana doers 96 Results obtained by Growers during 1910 from the Use of Acid Phosphate..............cccccccecesseseeceusesseneusees 98 How do the Fungi that cause Diseases in Ginseng find their Way into the Gardems..................ccccececee ee eeee es 102 Bordeaux, what it comsists Of ............. cocccecececceeeeeeeeceeeeeeees 108 FLOW =Dreparediss ccc yrcasdaua: se aessuet ey sewers cou secon wabae eee ess 108 How to test bordeaux...... my kul iuidunues eros aban cmaane eben eae ee! 109 NFISECES serie eee ae SaOMR eRS UR oe MS es roe al eats soo Rae yeas 110 Golden) Seale tessa ps pass cay cused meine tae gue Rem ea ae aoe aes OATES 112 Golden Seal (Hydrastis canadensis)...............cccceeeceeeeeeeeen cues 113 Pharmacopoeial name ............cccceececeeeeenen ees eeeecevenenees 113 Other COMMON NAMES ..........c cece ceceeeeeeceeeee en eneeeeneeeees 113 Habit and range.....- PO CR AEE Oe re 1138 Description. 6f plants. coccccscscscves cers sacavecasdaccdndesveerneesss 113 Description of rootstock...........ccceceeeeeececeee eee seneeseeenes 114 Collection, prices, and USeS.............cecceeeaeeeeeeeeeseteeeees 115 Cultivation.................. Re ORL eee Ds 8 te Reema emo ats 116 GINSENG. PART I. CHAPTER I. GINSENG. HISTORY. As ginseng is unknown to the large majority of people, and as to cultivate successfully any given crop it is neces- sary that the grower knows something of its nature and require- ments, the author has thought it best to acquaint the reader first with the history and description of the plant, before going into the more practical part which deals with cultural directions, yields, and profits. It is essential that the reader should know something of its development, to enable him to judge for himself whether or not it is advisable for him to engage in growing the crop. The American ginseng (Panaxv Quinquefolium) belongs to the natural order 4raliaceae, a family of plants closely related to the parsley family, in which are included the parsnip, carrot, and celery. Our plant isa near relative of the ginseng of China and Korea, Panax Ginseng, which is so highly prized by the Chinese. Fig. 31. Cross-section of a vascular bundle. Fungus threads may be seen in the thick walled cells or vessels.—See page 80 and Sl. (Magnified about 275 times ) Fig. 52. A wilt affected root with the bark pealed off, showing the darkened sap tubes which are affected.— See page $1. (From Special Crops.) DISEASES OF GINSENG. 81 leaf stems into the leaf and carry the water and mineral substances from the soil to the leaves, where they are used in the manufac- ture of plant foods. These tubes are arranged in a circle just un- der the bark of the roots and are the parts of the root affected by this fungus disease. The tubes are thick walled and there is con- tinually passing up through them a steady stream of water so that as water is lost by evaporation in the leaves more is immediately supplied and thus the leaf is kept rigid and plump, or turgid, as the botanist calls it. Any cause which interferes with the supply of water to the leaves results in wilting or the loss of such an amount of water as is required to keep the leaf plump and turgid. If the supply is cut off altogether, of course the top wilts and dries up completely. If we examine these diseased sap tubes carefully under the microscope, we will find them to contain masses of little fine threads (Fig. 31). These small interwoven threads are the roots of another very small plant, @ fungus called Acrostalagmus panax. The small fungus plant is living here because it can find an easy living, “‘sponging” off the ginseng root. The fact that the walls of the tubes are brown (Fig. 32) instead of white as they should be is a sign that the fungus is disintegrating them and probably using the material of which they are made, for food. The trouble from this parasitic fungus apparently comes, partly, from the fact that the dense growth of threads of the mycelium, as it is called, chokes up the tubes. This prevents the necessary supply of water from passing up to the leaves and consequently the tops wilt and die for want of water, even in a moist soil. Perhaps the greatest cause of the diseased condition is that the fungus produces poisonous excretions which are injurious to the surrounding tissues. This also has its effect on the rise of water through the tubes. The fungus has never been shown to enter and infect the 82 DISEASES OF GINSENG. ginseng root other than where the last year’s leaf stalk had bro- ken off leaving the ends of the numerous conducting tubes expos- ed to contact with the soil. The fungus enters here and works down these tubes until practically all of them are diseased to the extent that the ginseng plant wilts for want of water. Whenever wilted plants are observed it is advisable to dig the roots at once and dry them so as to remove the source of in- fection. Sterilizing the soil with steam or formalin might be advisable when the disease is very destructive. It may be advis- able to cultivate only resistant roots. Nothing has been done ex- perimentally to substantiate this method of control of this disease. Several observations made during our studies on this dis- ease seem to indicate that this malady is most destructive in gar- dens mulched with sawdust. Whether there is some real relation existing here or whether it was a mere coincidence is not certain. It is worth consideration, however, and should be more fully in- vestigated. BLACK ROT. (SCLEROTINIA SP.) Roots attacked by the Black Rot disease are when dug coal black in color. The roots are devoid of all fibers and are covered with many black protuberances or lumps (Fig 33) on the surface. The coal black color of the roots changes to a dirty gray when the roots are dried. This diseased condition is caused by a para- sitic fungus which penetrates and grows in the tissues of the root. It may gain entrance through any part of the root. Some infec- tions were found which had started at the crown, others in small- er roots. The outer tissue of the root is attacked first and com- pletely disorganized, being replaced by a tangled, compact mass of fungus threads. This mycelium then turns black, giving the Vig. 33. Black roots. Affected with Black Rot. Note the black lumps or Selerotia. The bud also is black.—See page 82 and 8 (From Special Crops. ) Fig. 34. Thecup or spring stage of the Black rot. These cups bear the spores which are disseminated by the wind.—See page 83. (From Special Crops.) Fig. 35. Sections through root and bud. The blackening of the tissue pro- gresses very slowly inward. This shows the conditions about six months after the roots are attacked,—See page 83. (From Special Crops.) DISEASES OF GINSENG. 83 roots the black (Fig. 33) appearance. At this stage the root is tough and very pliable. Within, it is still the natural color and instead of being compact and brittle, it is soft and watery. There is no offensive odor accompanying this rot as is the case with the soft rot, but the characteristic taste of the root is lost, it is some- what bitter. Infected roots which have been lying in the soil two or three years gradually become black throughout, soften and finally decay. The fungus causing this trouble is one of the cup fungi and belongs to the genus Sclerotinia. Just recently the cup or spring stage (Fig. 34) has been found. The cup-like body bears the spores of the fungus in great abundance on the upper surface. The spores are shot up into the air and are disseminated by the wind to different parts of the garden, where they germinate and reinfect other ginseng roots. It is probable that the spread of the disease in the gardens is due largely, however, to the abundance of the mycelium of the fungus which ramifies through the soil. The lumps or protuber- ances on the affected root are sclerotia, or hard, tuber-like bodies of compact mycelium. These sclerotia are resistant masses of the fungus mycelium which are capable of carrying the fungus over from year to year. The cells that make up the sclerotium germi- nate and send out germ tubes just as does a spore. The peculiar thing about this disease is that the period of attack of the fungus on the roots is during cold weather. Roots with well formed buds, when set in the fall in infected soil, do not come up in the spring and the blackening of the root may by this time extend about a quarter (Fig. 35) of the way to the center. There is no spread of the disease after the plants come up in the spring, from the fact that the fungus will only grow at a low tem- perature. In working with the disease in pure culture in the 84 DISEASES OF GINSENG. summer time an ice box is necessary, as it cannot be grown at the ordinary temperature. Atatemperature of 40 degrees F. it grew luxuriantly and fine sclerotia appeared on the plates. An attempt was made during the summer of 1909 to deter- mine if this could be eradicated by some soil treatment. These were only preliminary experiments and were not very extensive, yet it was found that the fungus will grow on an acid or alkaline culture medium equally well. This would seem to indicate that the fungus should grow in either acid or alkaline soils. For the present it would be advisable to be on a sharp lookout for black roots when digging in the fall. If any are found search the area carefully and remove all of them and burn them. Remoye the dirt in the affected area down to a depth of a foot and and a half or more and replace it with new soil. Van Hook cited a case where a grower had set roots in a bed from which black roots were taken six or seven years before. The roots failed to come up in the spring and when examined were found to be black rotted, thus showing that the fungus is capable of remaining in the soil several years. SOFT Rot. (BACTERIUM SP. & FUSARIUM SP.) The soft rot of ginseng roots is a serious disease which causes considerable loss each year. The symptoms of the soft rot are essentially the same above ground as the symptoms exhibited by tbe tops suffering from ‘“‘Fiber or End Rot.” A successive change of color from dark green to pale green, yellow and red mark the advance of the soft rot as it eats into the root. The above-ground conditions (Fig. 36) indicate the extent to which the rot has progressed. When the rotting begins with the smaller rootlets, the coloration of the foliage is the common indication, but Vig. 36. Showing a plant affected with the Soft Rot. The root almost entire- ly rotted. The disease has extended also up into the base of the stem.—See page St. (From Special Crops ) DISEASES OF GINSENG. 85. when the rot begins at the crown, the water supply is shut off quickly and tops wilt without the premature coloration. The disease usually affects the cortical tissues just under the epidermis, but often the entire root may suffer. The diseased portion will appear of a light brown color in contrast with the white of the healthy parts. The epidermis does not seem to be diseased and the brown discoloration appears be- neath the skin. The boundary line between the diseased and healthy tissue is in most cases definitely defined. In later stages the root will be found to be entirely rotted, being soft and watery and having a very strong, repugnant odor. The disease spreads up and down the root by way of the sap tubes. The soft rotted roots when examined under the microscope show an abundance of a fungus belonging to the genus Fusarium. These are common soil fungi and are associated with many soft rots of tuberous crops. Many kinds of bacteria are also found abundant in the decaying tissues. Until more accurate observa- tions and experiments can be made, it will be impossible to give the exact cause of the disease. It is probable, however, that a certain bacterium and a fungus belonging to the genus Fusarium are together responsible for the trouble. This disease has been found constantly associated with wet, soggy, poorly drained soils. Van Hook describes a bed enclosed with eight-inch boards, four inches in ground and with the top of the bed very little if any above the level of the walks. That portion of the garden where the rotting was worst was shaded by an apple tree. The garden was poorly ventilated, having two fences within, and one on either side of a row of fruit trees. The soil was packed and wet. This is an extreme case, but serves to show the chief condi- 86 DISEASES OF GINSENG. tions favorable to soft rot, bad conditions surrounding the plant, hastened by the age of the roots. As this disease is found only on poorly drained and wet, soggy soils, the remedy is to improve the conditions of the beds. Tile drains set fairly close together are advised. It would be bet- ter still to grow ginseng in soils more naturally adapted to the crop (light, sandy and well drained). The soil if heavy and soggy may be made lighter by stirring up and mixing sand with it. END OR RED Rot. (BACILLUS ARALIAVOROUS UYEDA.) This disease of ginseng is found causing much damage in Korea. In anextensive paper written by Y. Uyeda, a Japanese investigator of ginseng diseases, we find this disease described. He thinks it is the same as our soft rot disease. After several years of work, making inoculations and studying the organisms, he attributes the end rot to be a bacterium, which he has named Bacillus araliavorous. He also finds two other bacteria commonly associated with and aiding to rot the root. These he has called Pseudomonas araliae and Bacillus Koraiensis. He says the end rot has different symptoms, but that ac- cording to his observations usually the affected roots are a black or gray and become somewhat soft. The ginseng roots which are reddish gray become somewhat soft, but the gray black roots rot and decay more rapidly. He found that where ginseng is grown on a wet soil or in a moist climate and soil are very dry after the appearance of the decay, the rotting is veryslow. He finds it to be a wet soil disease and recommends the following: 1. Disinfect the soil where it has occurred with a 1 per cent. formalin solution, using 200 to 300 pounds per acre. Two weeks after this application the plantation will be ready for sowing seeds or planting. Fig. 37. Roots affected by Crown Rot. Notice the black Sclerotia on the roots and the shriveled appearance, on the right a stem showing the point of infection.-—-See page 87. (Irom Special Crops.) DISEASES OF GINSENG. 87 2. Practice the sunshine disinfection. During hot mid- summer cultivate the ground many times and try to kill all bacteria. 3, Drain the soil thoroughly and keep from getting soggy. 4. Fertilize with 600 to 700 pounds of calcium nitrate per acre, or use ashes or phosphoric acid fertilizers. CROWN Rot. (SCLEROTINIA LIBERTINA FUCKEL.) This rot has never been found very abundantly on ginseng, but yet it is widely spread and common on other plants. The fungus causing the disease seems to gain entrance to the plant through the lower part or base of the stem, near the surface of the ground. It works slowly up the stem but quite rapidly down, soon entering and rotting the root. The stem is bleached and the tissues become sunken and rotted. At this stage the stem is weak and the top falls over. The tissues of the diseased crown of the root becomes soft and ‘‘doughy”, so that it is like bread dough, but more watery. The diseased root is tough, but is non-elastic. The mycelium or roots of the fungus (Sclerotinia) are abundant running between the cells of the root. This mycelium grows out through the lenticels in the root and forms bunches or tufts of white felt. Large Sclerotia or hard compact lumps of mycelium, are also formed (Fig. 37) on the outside of the root. These sclero- tia are at first light colored or quite white. They become darker, changing to a brown and finally black, being folded or wrinkled very large and hard. In the spring these sclerotia germinate and send up a cup shaped body which bears the spring spores. This disease has also been observed to attack the upper part of the plant. In these plants leaflets all drooped from the petioles being practically rotted off and the leaves were wilted. 88 DISEASES OF GINSENG. The disease seems to be aggravated and probably induced entirely by the presence of too much moisture in the shack. That is, if the fungus is in thesoil, it will under these conditions produce the disease. One man who was having trouble with this disease stopped it almost immediately by lifting sections in the roof and aerating the shack. The old rotted roots should be dug and de- stroyed so as to remove the chance of infection from the cup stage in the spring. NEMATODE ROOT GALL. For the following account of the Nematode Root Gal], I am indebted to Van Hook: ‘A glance at (Fig. 38) will show the external appearance of roots affected with nematodes. They attack the fibers most readi- ly, but may begin at any point on the root. The largest knots seem to be formed on the main roots, although these are fewer in number. A single root may contain hundreds of galls. These are of any size up to two inches, but their usual size is three-eights to one-half inch. One effect of galls is to increase the number of fibers. From a single gall produced on a small fiber, a half dozen or more secondary fibers will be produced. Each of these is fre- quently as large as the fiber on which the gall was originally pro- duced; sometimes a fiber is even larger below. The galls are at first more or less smooth and white, but with age become roughened and show watery, translucent spots. This is from the decay within—the bark not yet being ruptured. The bark soon breaks, however, and if not too badly decayed within, wart or canker-like places are distributed over thezsurface. These may be mere spots with a rusty-yellow opening or a crack of considerable length and of a like color. Decay usually%con- sumes the entire gall, in the end. Frequently the gall complete- ly collapses on being picked up. Rie 3s Roots affected by Nematode Root Gall.—See page Ss, (I’rom Special Crops.) Fig 39. Development of the nematode worm, ge. eges: j, h, segmentation of eggs: b, h, young larva: ¢. 1, full grown larva: d, e, metamorphosis of male: f. mature male with spear: (sp.). m, thickening of female: n, mature female: o, ovary containing eges: (eg.) a, m, mae- nified 99 times: n, 40 times — See page $9.) (From Special Crops ) DISEASES OF GINSENG. 89 When there are present on a single root hundreds of galls and these filled with the worms (Fig. 39), there must be some loss of nourishment which should go to the plant. But by far the greatest injury is brought about by the abnormal growth of the galls. The tissue is stimulated to excessive growth at the expense of the remainder of the plant. The part of the root below the gall frequently attains an abnormal size. In these galls the ves- sels become very irregular and often entirely disconnected. When the gall decays, this portion of the root is also destroyed. Before the roots are placed in the market, the galls and fibers must be stripped, so that the loss is great. It is the opinion of the owner of this affected garden that nematodes do not injure the growth of the stalk or lessen the amount of seed. The growth of foliage this year was fine and the badly effected bed of 602 plants produced 18,000 good seed. Such plants might be kept for seed purposes, but in no case should roots be sold except in the dry market. It is probable that these worms were introduced into the garden from the forest. Theowner of this garden has found them on forest roots in Seneca County, and at Trumbull’s Corners, near Enfield, Tompkins County. They might have been carried in in- fested manure or from some greenhouse. Treatment:—The killing of nematodes in affected roots would be an impossibility, as any method employed would also kill the root. The removal of the garden to a different location is certainly to be advised, if it be possible; to start with seed or un- affected roots, taking great care not to transfer any of the worms to the new garden. (The seed if simply taken from the plant will not carry the worms. In case they are picked from the ground they should be dried as much as is safe, to insure not transferring 90 DISEASES OF GINSENG. any worms to the stratifying beds.) They could easily be carried by means of tools or perhaps on the shoes of a person walking from an affected garden, especially in wet weather. Stone and Smith state that a temperature of freezing or of 140 degrees F. is necessary to kill both eggs and worms in the soil, but for practical purposes in sterilizing the soil should be heated to 180 to 212 degrees. . Treating the soil with chemicals was of no practical value. The eggs are well protected and hard to kill. Itis a difficult matter to kill all the worms, distributed as they are through the soil. Shoveling up the soil and allowing to dry is an excellent method as the worms perish on drying. Put- ting the soil in a condition so it will freeze is a good plan. Per- haps the best method is to steam sterilize the soil. It is worth while to suggest, also, that the mulch be withheld long enough to allow the ground to freeze thoroughly, if it can be done without injury to the plants.” DISEASES OF GINSENG. 91 CHAPTER XxXIill. DISEASES OF GINSENG. END Rot, FIBER ROT, RUST OR SCaB. (BY H. H. WHETZEL.) The ‘‘fiber rot” or ‘‘end rot”, while among the more recent of the maladies added to the list of ginseng diseases, is quite well known to the growers. Nearly all have had more or less loss from it. The fungus, however, which causes the disease is by no means unknown to plant pathologists. It has been known for many years both in this country and Europe as a serious root disease producing organism on other crops. It causes a very serious rot of tobacco, affecting the plant in much the same as it does the ginseng. History of the Disease.—Since the fiber rot fungus is evi- dently a common inhabitant of the soil, it is probable that the disease occurs in its natural habitat. Certain it is that this malady has long been present on the cultivated plant in our ginseng gar- dens. Van Hook (’04), in his early work on the diseases of gin- seng, observed and described this disease on seedlings, giving it the name of ‘‘end rot.” Though he did not discover the cause of the disease at that time, later (Selby ’04) working at the Ohio State Experiment Station he found the casual organism and showed it to be the same as the one on tobacco. Since that time, it has been frequently found here at our laboratories on diseased roots. Not until the summer of 1909, however, did the disease become sufficiently destructive to attract the attention of the growers. The disease was probably aggravated by the excessive dry weather 92 DISEASES OF GINSENG. and the very general use of lime by the growers. Mr. W. H. Rankin, special assistant on the ginseng disease work in 1909, and the senior writer visited over 30 gardens in the State and every- where found more or less loss from the malady. Economic Importance.—While this disease had undoubted- ly caused more or less loss for years prior to 1909, especially in seedlings, its ravages first became general andfalarming during that season. Not only seedlings but older roots were found to be affected, particularly two-and three-year-olds. Many growers lost practically all their seedlings, for the short, stubby crowns (Fig. 40) left by the end rot are apt to rot if transplanted or at best give ill-shaped, sprangly roots which make poor growth and are of little value. In many of the beds examined not a single perfect seedling was to be found. Dr. K. Miyaki, who has just arrived from Korea, tells us that their most destructive disease is a root rot which very much re- sembles this fiber rot, or “‘rust,” so well known to our growers. He is here to make a special study of this malady. If after care- ful investigation he finds it to be the same disease, it*’would appear to be an almost universal factor in ginseng cultivation. The rot- ting of the fibers of the older roots greatly reduces root growth and stunts the plants. Many of them rot entirely. It would be difficult to estimate the loss suffered by the growers from this disease. The losses during 1910 seeem to have been much less than in 1909, due in large part probably to the greater rainfall in most sections of the State and also to the quite general use of acid phosphate this season. It appears, however, to be present to a considerable extent in many gardens and is undoubtedly a disease to be reckoned with every year. Next to the Alternaria blight it is probably the most widespread and destructive of the ginseng diseases in this country. Fig. 40. Showing the effect of Fiber Not on seedlings.-—See page 92 and 93. (From Special Crops.) Fig. 41. Older roots in last stages of the Fiber Rot, End Rot, Rust or Seab disease.—See page 938 and 95. (From Special Crops.) DISEASES OF GINSENG. 93 Symptoms.—In seedlings, the chief symptoms, during dry weather, are a gradual change from a dark green to a light green color, with premature coloring showing shades of red and yellow, the leaflets finally withering and the stem wilting. In wet weath- er, the color-changes may not be so striking and the wilting more sudden, the stem bending ina curve until the leaves (still green) touch the ground, differing strikingly from the plants affected with the ‘‘damping off,” in which disease the stem bends at sharp angles near the ground. An examination of the root will show the fibers nearly all rotted away and frequently with merely a bulb-like live crown with the bud left (Fig. 40). In the case of older plants the tops show similar symptoms in the way of pre- mature coloration and wilting. The fibers are more or less rotted off, the whole root having a bare and stubby appearance when taken up (Fig. 41). Often both seedlings and older roots show brown scabby areas of dead skin which sluffs off leaving the root more or less ‘‘pocked” or disfigured. In seedlings this may take the form of a rusty band about the root a short distance below the brown. This form of the disease is often spoken of by the grow- ers as ‘‘rust” and while we have as yet no absolute proof that it is only another kind of injury caused by the fiber rot fungus, still the frequent presence of the spores of the parasite in these “‘rust” spots, and the constant association of the “rust” symptoms with the fiber rot indicates strongly that the two are but different forms of the same disease. We may say, therefore, with some certainty that ‘‘end rot,” ‘‘fiber rot” and “‘rust” or “‘scab” are all different symptoms of the same disease. Etiology.—While the cause of this disease has not been absolutely proven (by infection experiments) to be the soil fungus Thelavia basicola (Fig. 42), nevertheless all the other evidence points in that direction. When diseased specimens are carefully 94 DISEASES OF GINSENG. examined, this fungus is quite constantly to be found associated with the disease lesions, and may be isolated in pure cultures from them. Observation has shown that limed gardens generally suffer most from the disease and it is well known that this fungus thrives only in alkaline soils or alkaline media. Unfortunately we have not yet found time to make the necessary inoculation experiments to establish the pathogenicity of this fungus on ginseng. How- ever, its well known and established parasitism on the roots of other plants together with the other evidence at hand, makes almost certain what the results of such inoculation experiments will be. Itmay be said, therefore (until disproven), that the Thelavia basicola causes the root lesions known commonly as ‘‘end rot”, “fiber rot”, and ‘‘rust” or ‘“‘scab.” This fungus forms three kinds of spores (seeds) as shown in (Fig. 42). The small hyaline conidia produced rapidly in great abundance probably serve to spread the disease from root to root through the soil, carried, perhaps, by movements of the soil water, earth worms, etc. The large brown conidia are resting spores germinating only after a period of rest, several months perhaps in many cases. ‘They thus serve to carry the fungus over from one season to another in the soil. It is pro- bably these spores, for example, that start the disease in seedling beds. The ascospores, produced 8 in a sac or ascus, probably serve also to carry the fungus over from year to year. It will thus be seen that the fungus is well equipped with means of pro- pagation and perpetuation. These spores on germination send out mycelium which penetrates the epidermis of the root and branch- ing, spreads into the inner tissues, destroying them and bringing them into this rotted condition. Being very small and numerous, the spores are very readily transported on roots or in soil, and so may be widely distributed. Moreover, as the fungus is probably a normal inhabitant of many soils, it is probably naturally present Pe a Lae brown en Conrdia. i 5, Sota | __ Small Kruakine Conidia ----Gscusg wilh $ asco-Spores. --~-Uscospore. Fig. 42. The End Rot Fungus. Thielavia basicola. (After Van Hook and Zopf.)—See page 93 and 94. (From Special Crops.) DISEASES OF GINSENG. 95 in the soils of most ginseng gardens. When conditions (of which alkalinity seems to be most important) become especially favorable it quickly shows its parasitic habit. Effect of the Disease on the Plant.—If a ginseng plant suffering from the fiber rot be dug up and the soil carefully re- moved it may be observed that the tiny feeding roots fibers are at first killed back to the larger root branches. Here new fibers sent out densely covered with the water gathering root hairs. These being exposed to the great number of spores produced on the diseased fibers, soon are attacked and killed. Again new fibers arise to succumb in turn to the attacks of the fungus, and so on during the entire season. The water gathering organs being thus repeatedly destroyed the plant soon begins to show the effects in the loss of the natural deep green color of its leaves and their pre- mature coloration. The drain on the plant to rebuild repeatedly the destroyed feedling roots weakens the entire root structure. The fungus now attacks the larger fibers and even the main root itself, rotting off the lower portion (Fig. 41) or infesting the epi- dermis and outer flesh of the root, causing ‘‘rust”. With the destruction of all the fibrous roots the water supply is finally cut off and the tops wilt. In wet weather, diseased plants may show a little premature coloration and may go through the season and mature seed. If they do succumb they wilt suddenly with the final rotting away of the last fiber. In dry seasons not only are the fibers less easily rebuilt but they are at the same time less efficient. To supply the large leaf surface with its required amount of water from a very dry soil calls for a full quota of ab- sorbing rootlets in prime condition. The cutting off of these by the rot results in starvation of the top, its loss of color, premature coloration and final death. Diseased plants which pull through the first season, start the second season under a great handicap. 96 DISEASES OF GINSENG. The tax upon the plant’s resources the previous season has left it in poor condition to build a new absorbing system of fibers. They are soon attacked by the parasite which has wintered in the soil or rotted rootlets and the root, exhausted of food and depriv- ed of its water supply, cannot maintain the newly expanded top, which promptly wilts and the plant dies, or at best the top makes a poor growth (Fig. 43), matures early, and the root at the end of the second season, if not entirely rotted, is at least no larger than in the autumn of the season before. In short, the plant becomes stunted and root-growth does not proceed. II. Control. The suggestions which have been made for the control of the disease were based entirely upon the work done by Briggs (08) of the Bureau of Plant Industry, U.S. D. A., on the control of the same disease of tobacco. He showed that the fungus (Thelavia basicola) is very sensitive to acid, i. e., will not grow in acid media or acid soils. While the acidity of the soil does not destroy the fungus, it is nevertheless unable to attack the roots of tobacco seedlings in such soil. However, if this soil were made alkaline the parasite would at once become active, attack and destroy the roots of the tobacco. After careful quan- titative tests, he treated the land on which tobacco was to be grown with acid phosphate (treated rock) at the rate of 1,000 pounds to the acre, with good results, in preventing loss from the parasite. Our examination of the gardens of the State during 1909 showed that many, perhaps the majority of the growers had been applying lime more or less abundantly to their ginseng beds. In every case it seemed evident that this had increased the injury from ‘‘fiber rot’. Wherever unlimed beds were handy for com- parison it was evident that they suffered less from the disease. (sdoag Teredg u014) ‘gg 5ed vagS— SY} LIY ISB YMRS punorwsyoRG ULasoyyT, “OY 1aqiy yA peqyoozurt ATpeq punoisealof ay} UL SJUe[q “UdaplVS uo aseasip ay} jo Jaya |eaouay “CF ¢ DISEASES OF GINSENG. 97 To be sure, many beds to which lime had never been applied showed fiber rot, but the amount of injury in these was usually in marked contrast to that in beds treated with the lime. While we could make no definite recommendations for con- trol last season, we suggested to the growers the desirability of giving the acid phosphate treatment atrial. In view of Brigy’s work on the disease on tobacco it seemed reasonable to expect similar results on ginseng. Many growers consequently under- took to treat from one to several of their beds. Many of the gar- dens so treated have been visited by the junior writer this season and a summary of the results as obtained by the growers, as will be seen from the following report, warrant us in recommending the use of acid phosphate at from one thousand to two thousand pounds per acre, on ginseng beds where fiber rot has given trou- ble and especially on beds where seed is to be sown. 98 DISEASES OF GINSENG. CHAPTER XXIV. DISEASES OF GINSENG. RESULTS OBTAINED BY GROWERS DuRING I9IO FROM THE Use OF ACID PHOSPHATE. BY PROF. H. H. WHETZEL. These gardens have been selected from the total number visited and represent average conditions as we have found them. Garden No. 1.—This garden had been treated with acid phosphate at the rate of 1,000 pounds per acre. There was a little fiber rot in the beds, but the owner says that it is not pearly as bad as last year. This year he has very good seedlings in the beds treated with acid phosphate, while last year his seedlings nearly all went down with fiber rot. Garden No. 2.—This garden was treated with 1,000 pounds acid phosphate per acre. There is some fiber rot in the older plants, but not nearly so much as last year. He had a large num- ber of seedlings in beds treated with acid phosphate which were apparently free from fiber rot. Garden No. 3.—These gardens were treated last fall with acid phosphate at the rate of 1,000 pounds per acre. Last year they suffered severely from fiber rot. This summer there was still some fiber rot, but it was not nearly so bad as last year. Garden No. 4.—This garden, with the exception of a few beds, had been treated with acid phosphate at the rate of 2,000 pounds per acre. It had, however, more or less fiber rot in all the beds, especially in those containing younger plants. Four beds which had been treated with lime last fall were gone down DISEASES OF GINSENG. 99 almost completely with this disease, while four other adjoining beds, set out at the same time, with the same kind of roots and under the same conditions, but treated with the acid phosphate were but very little affected with fiber rot and had larger and cleaner roots. Garden No. 5.- These beds were treated with acid phos- phate last fall at the rate of 1,009 pounds per acre. Last year this garden suffered severely from fiber rot, while this year the loss was much less. The plants still infected this year are old roots that had probably been infected so badly last year that the fungus was able to maintain itself this summer in spite of the acid phosphate used. Garden No. 6.—The owner had used 500 pounds acid phos- phate per acre on part of his garden, but both the treated and untreated beds were considerably affected with the fiber rot, there being but little difference between the two. However, this garden had formerly been a tobacco field and as it is in such places that this fungus is found most abundant, this probably accounts for the fiber rot. The use of a larger amount of acid phosphate would probably have given more benificial results. Garden No. 7 —The owner had treated the larger part of one garden last fall with 500 pounds acid phosphate per acre, raked into the mulch. These beds, which had very little fiber rot, showed a decided improvement over last year. One small bed, 6x8 feet, treated with 1,000 pounds acid phosphate, had more fiber rot than the beds treated with 500 pounds, but this was on too small a scale to be conclusive. Several other gardens were visited which had been treated with acid phosphate, in all of which it showed more or less benifi- cial results. However, the results given above show a very fair 100 DISEASES OF GINSENG. average of the benefits obtained this summer. Quite a number of gardens were also visited which had not been treated with acid phosphate. A few of these were nearly free from fiber rot, but the majority of them were very badly infected. [Acid phosphate may be applied by distributing it evenly on top of the beds, where beds already planted are to be treated, but the better way is to work it into the soil. The variety of acid phosphate said to be best for treating ginseng beds, is such as contains no potash or nitrogen. It can be bought from dealers in commercial fertilizers at about $17.00 per ton. It comes put upin sacks containing from 100 to 125 pounds. Dr. K. Miyake, from the Imperial University of Japan, an accomplished botanist and plant pathologist, and Mr. M. Tomiiye, ginseng expert in the Administration Bureau of the Government, visited this country in the summer of 1910 in the interest of the Korean Government, for the purpose of studying the American methods of controiling diseases of ginseng. They visited many gardens in Wisconsin as well as in other states during their stay here, and from them it was learned that in Japan they are trou- bled with a similar disease as that which is known in this country as ‘end rot,” “‘fiber rot,” “rust”, or ‘“scab,” and they said that the rayages of the disease had reduced the output of dry root in the Korean gardens from 50,000 pounds in 1904 to 2,000 in 1909, And it was since learned from another source that the Chinese gardens in the same length of time have dropped from an annual output of 350,000 pounds of dry root, to 7,000 pounds. Dr. Miyake, who speaks English fluently, having studied part of the time in the State College of Agriculture, Cornell Uni- versity, said that he had made some tests, and obtained the best results in the control of rust by merely dipping the roots, before DISEASES OF GINSENG. 101 transplanting, into a Bordeaux mixture solution of about 5-5-50 strenght, leaving them in this for five or ten minutes, then plant- ing them immediately, while still wet with the Bordeaux. This treatment was especially effective in cleaning up roots which alrea- dy showed the rust. The rust sloughed off, and the roots came out next year in a fine white condition. The treatment has not as yet been thoroughly tested in this country, but it seems it would be worth while for our growers to try it. Great care should be exercised in preparing the Bordeaux for this treatment, for an excess amount of copper sulphate would result in killing the roots. —Author. ] 102 DISEASES OF GINSENG. CHAPTER XxXvV. DISEASES OF GINSENG. How Do THE FUNG! THAT CAUSE DISEASES IN GINSENG FIND THEIR Way INTO THE GARDEN? (BY PROF. H. H. WHETZEL.) This question, in one form or another, has been asked by every grower of ginseng when he found some disease playing havoc with his plants. It is asked by the prospective grower who looks forward to keeping these parasites out of his plantings. The question is far more easily asked than answered. Fungous parasites of other plants are disseminated in many different ways, and it is reasonable to suppose that the fungi infesting ginseng may also be distributed in some of these ways. Yet positive proofs, as to just how any one of the different ginseng pests find their way into the ginseng garden, are, so far as I know, entirely wanting. In the case of a number of the common diseases of other plants, it is now well known that the casual parasite is carried over winter and distributed in or on the seed of the host plant, as for example, the anthracnose, or pod spot, of beans, loose smut of wheat, potato late blight (in the tuvers), etc. In some of my pre- vious publications on ginseng diseases, I have suggested the possi- bility that the Alternaria Blight of Ginseng might also be thus disseminated. Of some twenty diseases of ginseng which I have thus far studied, this is the only one that I have any reason to believe might thus be sometimes introduced into new plantings. When I first studied the blast of the seed heads caused by the Al- DISEASES OF GINSENG. 103 ternaria, I was inclined to think that this might prove to be one of the chief sources for the introduction of the disease into new beds or distant gardens where seed might be planted. In an arti- cle in the Cornell Countryman, November, 1906, I wrote: ‘‘Affect- ed berries,” shell from the head at the slighest touch. This manifestation of the disease has long been known as ”’seed blast”. If the berries have begun to color, the injury from the disease will probably be very slight. The “‘blasting” of the green berries, however, will undoubtedly reduce or destroy the vitality of the seed. There is a strong probability that the fungus may be car- ried over in or on the seeds. ‘“‘Every season since 1906 I have sought for positive proof that the disease may be carried with the seed. I have foundnone. That the fungus attacks the seed, even the ripe berries, there can be no doubt Spores are readily found upon diseased berries. Yet in view of the stratifying process, through which nearly all growers put their seed before planting, it is very doubtful, whether any of these spores remain alive to infect the plants when they finally come up. If the spores are kept perfectly dry, they will retain their vitality for two or three months or longer, but in the presence of moisture and favorable temperature, such as is provided during the process of stratifying it is very doubtful, whether any spores would escape germination and death. It seems quite certain that the fungus attacks only the soft outer pulp and is not able to penetrate the hard stony covering of the seed itself. As this pulp is all rotted or crushed and washed from the seed shortly after it is gathered, there is relatively little chance for the fungus to remain attached to it. Furthermore, 1 have never observed an epidemic of the blight to start in a seedling bed. Seedlings seem to be less often attacked than older plants. In an article, June 1909, I wrote: 104 DISEASES OF GINSENG. ‘*Whether the fungus is ever carried over on the seed is a question yet to be settled. Ihave frequently observed that seedlings suf- fered much less from attacks of the blight than do older plants. However, under certain weather conditions and in gardens in which the blight is epidemic, seedlings may also go down.” Other diseases such as damping off, and rot, etc., are far more frequent- ly the cause of destruction among seedlings than the blight. Since I have clearly proven that the Alternaria fungus is regularly carried over the winter on dead stalks on the beds, it seems far more probable, in view of the above evidence, that the spores of the parasite might be carried into new beds in soil with roots which are transplanted. Of course, the fungus does not attack the roots, but the spores might be clinging to the soil or crowns of the roots and so be on hand at the surface of the new bed to infect the stalk when it comes through the ground in the spring. This Alternaria fungus, so far as we know, attacks only ginseng and is peculiar to that plant. I have found it on the wild ginseng plant in the woods. It is quite certainly an old enemy of the wild plant which, under the favorable conditions found in our gardens, spreads with great rapidity and destructiveness. From the fact that it appeared at about the same time throughout the ginseng growing regions of the United States and in isolated gar- dens many miles from any others, it would appear almost certain that it was brought to many gardens at first on wild plants brought in from the woods. During the early years of the cultivation of this plant, in 1900 to 1906, it was a common practice for ginseng growers to take long trips, visiting each other’s gardens, to see what others had and learn about the business. These visitors oft- en went through several gardens in different localities within a day or two, and, I feel quite sure, did more to spread the Alterna- ria blight which became epidemic in 1903 and 1904 than did any DISEASES OF GINSENG. 105 other one thing. The first specimen of the Alternaria disease that I received was sent in by one of these traveling growers. He had picked it up in the garden of a grower whom he was visiting, and finally sent it in after he had carried it through several other gar- dens, exhibiting it to the owners in each case as a new trouble to be looked out for. No doubt he carried millions of the spores on his clothes to brush some of them off on the plants in other gar- dens, as he passed through. I believe, therefore, that the dissemination of the Alternaria fungus with the seed of ginseng is of far less importance than its distribution by other means, As it isacommon parasite on the wild plant, it may be expected to appear in any garden sooner or later. The same may be said of pratically all the other diseases of ginseng with which we are acquainted. They are caused by fungi either peculiar to the wild plants or common parasites on other cultivated crops of field and garden. The majority of diseases of ginseng attack the roots. For- tunately few of these are very destructive. It would seem that any of these might be readily distributed with roots, when taken to new beds or new gardens for transplanting. However, since these root diseases are caused in almost every case by fungi com- mon on the roots of many other plants, the disease organism is just as likely to be in the soil, where the roots are planted, as it is, to be brought in with the roots themselves. The spores of all of these parasites are microscopic, and so it would be impossible to prevent their getting into the garden by inspection of the roots be- fore planting. The root itself might be diseased, and yet it would not always be possible to detect it. Treatment of the roots with some disinfectant before setting might be effective in some cases. Dr. Miyake has shown that the rust of the roots may be cured by dipping the roots into Bordeaux as they are being transplanted. 106 DISEASES OF GINSENG. It has been suggested, in purchasing roots and seed, they be obtained from gardens free from diseases. We have received diseased specimens from hundreds of gardens from Maine west to the State of Washington and from Canada as far south as ginseng is grown. I have yet to visit a garden in which there is no disease to be found. All gardens do not have all the diseases in them. The diseases present may not be especially destructive now. But they are apt to become so, when conditions become especially favorable. It has been suggested that a law should be passed to prevent growers’ selling seed or roots from gardens in which diseases had appeared. Such a law, to be just, would have to apply to all other crops as well as to ginseng and would hardly, in the present state of our agriculture, be possible of enforcement. Some ginsing growers have, I believe, advertised their gardens ‘“‘free from all disease”. Having visited gardens throughout the state for the past five years and having in my laboratory now diseased specimens from hundreds of gardens throughout the United States, I feel safe in saying, no man can, with honesty, make such a statement. I have seen gar- dens in which disease was not serious. There are doubtless some gardens in which certain diseases, like the Alternaria blight, have not yet appeared. But every garden sooner or later suffers from some one or more of the numerous diseases to which the ginseng plant is subject. Let no man deceive you with worthless guaran- tees that his gardens are free from all diseases or that he has some secret method of growing his ginseng free from all diseases. Buy from reliable growers of ginseng. Accept only roots and seed that look clean and in good condition. Spray your plants systematic- ally. If root diseases appear, remove the diseased plants. Treat the soil wit, formalin or other substances known to be effective against the specific disease which you find. Remember that these DISEASES OF GINSENG. 107 diseases are as apt to be introduced with woods soil or manure, as they are with seed or roots, and, until itis definitely shown that certain diseases are introduced commonly with seed, do not let this worry you. While it has not been proven to be the case, my knowledge of ginseng diseases in general leads me to believe that there is far more danger of introducing certain of these diseases with roots than with seeds. 108 DISEASES OF GINSENG. CHAPTER XXVI. BORDEAUX, WHAT IT Consists OF AND HOW PREPARED. Bordeaux mixture derives its name from the place of its discovery, Bordeaux, France. It consists of copper sulphate, which is commonly called blue vitriol or bluestone, fresh lime, and water. Several strengths of the mixture are used under different conditions. The formula found to be efficient for spraying ginseng plants is known as a 3-3-50 solution. HOW PREPARED. Take three pounds of good unslaked stone lime, slake it in hot water, and, after it is slaked, add enough cold water to make twentyfive gallons. Then put three pounds of cop- per sulphate in toan old basket or sack and hang it near the top of twentyfive gallons of water in another vessel. The reason for hanging it near the top, is that the dissolved copper will go to the bottom of the vessel and give the water an opportunity to fully dissolve the whole amount in a few hours. Were you to simply place the sulphate in the water and not stir it often, you would find that it was not all dissolved. The copper sulphate solution must not be kept in a metal vessel, for it would decompose the copper. The above solutions constitute what we will call ,,stock- solutions,” and must be kept separate until ready to spray. When ready to spray, stir each solution, take a pailful of equal size of each, and pour both at the same time (Fig. 44) into a third vessel. This makes bordeaux, and it is now ready for use. Before using, stir the bordeaux and strain through a brass wire screened funnel into the sprayer. (If insects are to be de- ian! Fig. 44. Making Bordeaux from Stock Solution —See page 108. (From Special Crops.) DISEASES OF GINSENG. 109 stroyed at the same time, add about four ounces paris green to each fifty gallons of bordeaux.) It is important that the mixing of the two solutions is done as above stated. Never mix more than enough for the day’s use, for the two solutions, after they are mixed, will deteriorate. Separated, or what we have above termed stock solutions, can be kept all sum- mer unimpaired. HOW TO TEST BORDEAUX. Bordeaux may be tested, to deter- mine whether asufficient quantity of the lime solution has been add- ed to neutralize the caustic action of the copper sulphate, with ferrocyanide of potassium (yellow prussiate of potash). The preparation of ferrocyanide of potassium for this test is simple. As bought at the drug store, it is a yellow crystal and is easily soluble in water. Ten cents worth will do for a seasons spraying of a large garden. It should bea full saturation; that is, use only enough water to dissolve all the crystals. The cork of the bottle should be notched, or a quill inserted, so that the con- tents will come out in drops. Adrop will give as reliable a test as a spoonful. The bottle should be marked ,,Poison.” Dip out a little of the Bordeaux mixture ina cup or saucer and drop the ferrocyanide on it. So long as the drops turn brown on striking the mixture, the mixture has not received enough lime. Add more lime water until no change takes place. After that, add a little more lime water to make the necessary amount of lime a sure thing. A considerable excess of lime does no harm, while not enough may cause burning of the plants. It is always well to test Bordeaux mixture by using the ferrocyanide of potassium, 110 DISEASES OF GINSENG. CHAPTER XXVIL. INSECTS. Fortunately there are but few kinds of insects that attack ginseng, either plant or root. Cutworms sometimes are a little troublesome in early spring. They attack the stems of the young plants near the surface of the ground when the plants first come up; later on as the stems harden, no more damage is done by them. Slugs at times attack the leaves of the plant, eating holes into the leaves. They work mostly at night or in very dark days. Slugs prefer dark, moist places, and in a well ventilated garden they are not likely to do much, if any, damage. The bug or worm has often been wrongfully accused of causing disease. He has been charged up with much of which he is not guilty. Most of the diseases that are commonly charged up as having been caused by insects, have really been caused by fungi or bacteria. The reason for this may be that the isolated spores of fungi and bacteria are microscopic i. e. invisible to the naked eye. Often when the grower examines a diseased root or plant, especially such as have advanced to a state of putrification, he finds present insects or animal life of some kind, and he at once charges the cause of the trouble to;these, while, in reality, the cause is due to a previous attack by fungi or bacteria which has killed the plant or root, and the worms found present have subse- quently come to feed on the decaying matter. A good insecticide for destroying worms inhabiting the soil is Kainite. At least, it is considered a good insecticide by DISEASES OF GINSENG. 111 some. Kainite can be bought from all large dealers in commer- cial fertilizers, at about one dollar per one hundred pounds. When applied, it should be worked into the soil at the rate of about 400 pounds to the acre. It should be applied about two weeks before roots are planted, allowing it to dissolve and not come in direct contact with roots. Tobacco dust is considered a good insecticide to destroy insects attacking the leaves, such as slugs. The dust may be bought of tobacco product manufacturers in several grades, at from $1.00 to $2.50 per‘one hundred pounds, and applied by dust- ing on the plants and surface of the ground, at the rate of about fivehundred pounds to the acre. It doesnot injure the plants and, besides being an insect destroyer, it acts as a fertilizer. A good insect destroyer, and one that works without pay, isa toad. A few toads, scattered throughout the garden, will de- vour innumerable insects of various kinds, and they do no harm to ginseng. 112 GOLDEN SEAL. PART IV. CHAPTER XXVIII GOLDEN SEAL. Golden Seal (Hydrastis Canadensis) is another medicinal plant, which, on account of the rapid increase in prices paid for the root during late years, has attracted the attention of people who are inclined to embark in freak farming. While in 1895 the price paid was only 17 cents per pound, the prices have steadily increased since that time, so that in the fall of 1911 $4.50 per pound was paid for the article, and indications are favorable that still higher prices can be expected, as the wild supply of the forest decreases. Experiments as to the possibility of growing the plant, have been made at the Government Experiment Station, as well as by individuals in different parts of the United States, and it was found that it could be successfully and profitably grown even in 1906, at atime when the price was only $1.25 per pound. One grower, known to the author to be conservative in his statements, wrote in 1906 that, according to his experience at the then prevailing prices ($1.25 per pound), a man with good soil can expect with a good degree of certainty to clear $1000.00 a year from an acre of golden seal by letting it grow three years after setting out small rootlets, or a total of $3000.00 profit from one acre in three years time; or, if left to grow five years, a total pro- fit of $5000.00 over and above all cost. This man stated that an acre of ground would yield 4000 pounds of dry roots in three Se er wD ie 4 meen Fig. 45. Golden Seal. Plant, root and seed cluster.—See page 113. (From Special Crops.) GOLDENSEAT,. 113 years time. If such is the case the profits that could be realized at present prices would be enormous. The conditions under which the plant is grown are identi- cal to those followed in growing ginseng, to which the reader is referred. So far as is known, golden seal is not subject to attack by disease. At least not nearly so much so as ginseng. The author has only had three years of personal experience in growing the plant, and his knowledge is therefore not very good authority, and for this reason he will not venture into detail on the subject. The following is copied from American Root Drugs, Bul. 107, 1907, U. S. Department of Agriculture: GOLDEN SEAL. (Hydrastis canadensis L.) Pharmacopoeial name.— Hydrastis. Other common names.—Yellowroot, yellow puccoon, or- ange-root, yellow Indian-paint, turmeric-root, Indian turmeric, Ohio curcuma, ground-raspberry, eye-root, eye-balm, yellow-eye, jaundice-root, Indian-dye. (Fig. 45.) Habitat and range.—This native forest plant occurs in patches in high, open woods, and usually on hillsides or bluffs af- fording natural drainage, from southern New York to Minnesota, and Western Ontario, south to Georgia and Missouri. Goldenseal is now becoming scarce throughout its range. Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, and West Virginia have been the great- est goldenseal-producing States. Description of plant.—Goldenseal is a perennial plant be- longing to the same family asthe buttercup, namely, the crowfoot 114 GOLDEN SEAL family (Ranunculaceae). It has a thick yellow root-stock, which sends up an erect, hairy stem about 1 foot in height, surrounded at the base by 2 or 3 yellowish scales. The yellow color of the roots and scales extends up the stem so far as it is covered by soil, while the portion of the stem above ground has a purplish color. The stem, which has only two leaves, seems to fork at the top, one branch bearing a large leaf and the other a smaller one and a flower. (Fig. 46.) A third leaf, which is much smaller than the other two and stemless, is occasionally produced. The leaves are palmately 5 to 9 lobed, the lobes broad, acute, sharply and unequally toothed; they are prominently veined on the lower sur- face, and at flowering time, when they are very much wrinkled, they are only partially developed, but they continue to expand until they are from 6 to 8 inches in diameter, becoming thinner in texture and smoother. The upper leaf subtends or incloses the flower bud. The greenish white flower appears about April or May, but it is of short duration, lasting only five or six days. It is less than half an inch in diameter and, instead of petals, has three small petallike sepals, which fall away as soon as the flower expands, leaving only the numerous stamens (as many as 40 or 50), in the center of which are about a dozen pistils, which finally de- velop into a round, fleshy, berry-like head which ripens in July or August. The fruit when ripe turns a bright red and resembles a large raspberry, whence the common name ‘‘ground-raspberry” is derived. (Fig. 47.) It contains from 10 to 20 small, black, shining, hard seeds. Description of rootstock.—The fresh root-stock of golden- seal, which has a rank, nauseating odor, is bright yellow, both internally and externally, with fibrous, yellow rootlets produced from the sides. It is from 14 to 24 inches in length, from one- ig. 46. Goldenseal plant. I'rom pho- tograph. — See page I14. (From Special Crops.) 48. Goldenseal rootstock.—See page 115, (From Special Crops.) Vig Fig. 47. Goldenseal leaf and seed GOLDEN SEAL. 115 fourth to three-fourths of an inch in thickness, and contains a large amount of yellow juice. (Fig. 48) In the dried state, the rootstock is crooked, knotty, and wrinkled, from 1 to 2 inches in length, and from one-eighth to one- third of an inch in diameter. It is of a dull-brown color on the outside and breaks with a clean, short, resinous fracture, showing a lemon-yellow color inside. After the rootstock has been kept for some time, it will become greenish yellow or brown internally and its quality impaired. The cup-like depressions or stem scars on the upper surface of the rootstock resemble the imprint of a seal, whence the most popular name of the plant, goldenseal, is derived. The rootstock as found in commerce is almost bare, the fibrous rootlets, which in drying become very wiry and brittle, breaking off readily and leaving only small protuberances. The odor of the dried rootstock, while pot so pronounced as in the fresh material, is peculiar, narcotic, and disagreeable. The taste is exceedingly bitter, and when the rootstock is chewed, is a persistent acridity, which causes an abundant flow of salive. Collection, prices, and wses.—The root should be collected in autumn after the seeds have ripened, freed from soil, and care- fully dried. After adry season goldenseal dies down soon after the fruit is mature, so that it often happens that by the end of September not a trace of the plant remains above ground; but if the season has been moist, the plant sometimes persists to the be- ginning of winter. The price of goldenseal ranges from $1 to $1.50 (this was in 1907) a pound. Goldenseal, which is official in the United States Pharma- copoeia, isa useful drug in digestive disorders and in certain catarrhal affections of the mucous membranes, in the latter in- stance being administered both internally and locally. 116 GOLDEN SEAL. Cultivation.— Once so abundant in certain parts of the country, especially in the Ohio Valley, goldenseal is now becom- ing scarce throughout its range, and in consequence of the in- creased demand for the root, both at home and abroad, its cultiva- tion must sooner or later be more generally undertaken in order to satisfy the needs of medicine. In some parts of the country the cultivation of goldenseal is already under way. The first thing to be considered in growing this plant is to furnish it, as nearly as possible, the conditions to which it has been accustomed in its natural forest home. This calls for a well- drained soil, rich in humus, and partially shaded. Goldenseal stands transplanting well, and the easiest way to propagate it is to bring the plants in from the forest and transplant them to a properly prepared location, or to collect the rootstocks and to cut them into as many pieces as there are buds, planting these pieces in a deep, loose, well-prepared soil, and mulching, adding new mulch each year to renew the humus. With such a soil the culti- vation of goldenseal is simple, and it will be necessary chiefly to keep down the weeds. These plants may be grown in rows 1 foot apart and 6 in- ches apart in the row, or they may be grown in beds 4 to 8 feet wide, with walks between. Artificial shade will be necessary, and this is supplied by the erection of lath sheds. The time re- quired to obtain a marketable crop is from two to three years. corer Sr a S