130 A FUNGOID CUCUMBER DISEASE IN ESSEX.
citrina on the hank of the little stream behind the "Robin Hood"
Inn. I have made a drawing of this very interesting species,
which I understand will be placed along with the illustrations of
other Forest fungi in the Epping Forest Museum.
A FUNGOID CUCUMBER DISEASE IN ESSEX.
By M. C. COOKE, M.A., LL.D., A.L.S., &c.
It is now five years since I received from Totteridge leaves of
Melon which were affected with a new form of Fungus disease,
and this was described in the Gardeners' Chronicle for the 5th
September, 1896, under the name of Cercospora melonis.
During the past month (September, 1901) I have had
leaves of Cucumber sent to me from Chelmsford, affected with
the same disease, and although my query to the sender has never
been answered, I presume that the locality is Essex, if it is not
really Chelmsford, and therefore comes within the limits of the
Essex Field Club.
The leaves are spotted with distinct circular bleached spots,
of a pale ochre colour, and about half an inch in diameter. Such
spots are brittle and soon break out and fall away, the tissues
being quite dead. The dead tissue is traversed by a plentiful
mycelium, from which arise darkish olive threads or hyphoe,
which are unbranched and septate, about 150 mm. long. These
hyphae bear long conidia, which are almost cylindrical, slightly
attenuated upwards, obtuse at the extremities, a little curved,
and at first multi-nucleate, ultimately five to seven-septate, faintly
coloured, from 80 to 120 mm. long and about 7 mm. thick.
This fungus belongs to the Black Moulds, and most of the
species are parasitic upon, and destructive to living plants. As
the disease is truly endophytic and is established within the
tissues before the spots appear, there are grave doubts whether
there is any hope of cure. All that can be done is to prevent its
spreading by destroying the infected plants.