CULTIVATING TURNIPS.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1713, 2 April 1913, Page 10

CULTIVATING TURNIPS.

. .■HIEVENTING'"rINGERAND TOE." .•;iA.>/rox)ort ou»a sot' of ''experiments carried, out,, with. the object" of testing tho application of substances which have the reputation of being useful lirwafdingoff attacks of Ul9 turnip disease-knowii as "finger and too" has been 'issuAl recently, by . the. Professor of Agriculture at . the West of Scotland Agricultural"College. (Air. R.l\ Wright). materials arc.lmio. in different forms, sulphate of copper, . aiul kainit. 'I'Uo Oitp'tJvijii'ents were made on turnips grown'»-ii»sK|i field• poor in lime ami very much . infested':with ;the disease; ; :'l'lic 'rtntfrt' embodies full details of (lie results oota inert, and the conclusions 'arrived 'at are \vell worth noting. TUev are;—; i-i..*,,- 1 ;. . ' l.'i'L'he'destruction of the' turnip : crop by'tM disease known as ."fingcr-and-toe" can- to.' a > certain extent, bo 'prevented the'! 4-pplictftioii of s(iital)lp!'dressings' of litne.'-!- .■ ; v .2, .Qn-land imuch infected dressings of two tons per acre can-not-be/relicd ;on to produce much effect. ',3; On - land- much infected application offoitr tons'iier acre are more) successful, but .will riot,entirely destroy tho disease nor save "the-crop. ' - ■ .;4.'Lime applied in the drills in spring is much less,effective in preventing the diseasfe-.than--when pu; 011 tho land in tho' prede'dirig'antumn. jS.'-'SiTfairdressings'ef lime applied either in r a : iituri>h;'or-in spring'have little effect on.-tliseA.iK ' 0:"I;iine slaked in small heaps by atmcispnei'Tc 'nibU'tVWs is • distinctly loss. effec-tivo-'iiu'.proventiiig the disease than the samS"liine "(CaO) slaked by pouring water ovei'Mt '.Whftii'fresh from tho kilns, and spreading '-"oyer the land' while, it- still reniaihs inSiC'&mstic conditiou.v - ; is more expensive, and no-more ; effective"than an equal quantify 01/f>l?Bjs6rly slakful lime. ■j 8. Sulphate of copper applied at the rate ofvnalf a ton per acre has no immediate in saving the turnip crop from the ''iinger-and-too" attack, but is ultimately injurious to the disease fungus. 9. Kainit applied in the same quantity in spring to the turnip crop has no effect in protecting it from'a "fingcr-and-toe" attack;;„but : il_s subsequent action in. the soil.,lis.,.detrimental to',the "finger-and-toq" .ftiugus,, aud beneficial to succceding turnip crops;.. .