The longevity ofCorynebacterium sepedonicum on potato bags when placed under different environmental conditions

Summary

It is generally thought that ring-rot bacteria may be carried on burlap bags for long periods of time, the length of which varies with the environmental conditions.

In tests conducted during 1942, 1943 and 1946, it was found that ring rot bacteria may be carried in a viable condition on burlap bags tied in bundles for periods of seven months when stored both inside and outside the cellar. However, some of the tests were negative for this period. Where 100-pound burlap bags, previously contaminated, were hung singly by the ends and the whole surface of one side exposed to the sun, the ring-rot bacteria were greatly reduced but not completely eliminated after periods of 40 days. Similar bags placed inside, away from the sun, were found to carry viable bacteria, with little reduction, for the same period of time.