Abstract
THE drastic roguing which is performed on crops of potatoes for seed has resulted in a reduction of the amount of therefore obvious viruses leaf-roll and rugose-mosauc. otfto virus X, however, causes a slight mottle of the foliage which is noticeable only under cartain conditions of weather, and may often be missed by the roguers. F. C. Bawden, B. Kassanis and R. M. Roberts conclude, in a recent paper (Ann. App. Biol, 25, No. 2, 250-265 ; June 1948), that the control of virus X must involve methods additional to those of field inspection. Presence of the virus in a stock of potatoes can be tested by inoculation to indicator plants and by serological methods. Spread of the virus is slow under natural conditions, and the authors conclude that the maintenance of stocks from which virus X has been eliminated by testing is feasible under commercial conditions. The virus reduces yield by 5-24 per cent; but it is refreshing to find the idea of clonal selection also considered along with questions of yield and loss due to virus.
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Potato Virus X. Nature 163, 502–503 (1949). https://doi.org/10.1038/163502a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/163502a0