The Newberry herald. [volume] (Newberry, S.C.) 1865-1884, 1880-09-15
SEPTEMBER.
RUST IN WHEAT.

From the Monthly Report Of the S. c. De-
partment Of Agriculture.
: The annual loss to our planters
from this cause amounts to thous-
ands of dollars, and any remedy for
its prevention will be great bless
ing to our State. The only preven-
tive, so far found effective, seems
to be in the drainage of the soil.
The Commissioner of Agriculture
for the United States says:
'tMany preventives for rust in
wheat have been, with more or less
confidence, presented to the public;
but so far as we know, no sure and
effective remedy has yet been
found"
The Tennessee Commissioner
says:
Thorough drainage of the soil is
the only efficient preventive. Ap-
plications of salt Chloride Of So
dium) 200 los. per acre sometimes
have a happy effect il refreshing
luxuriance of growth, andso dinin-
- ishing the extreme succulency OF
the plant that the rust spores do
not find such an abundant lodg-
ment in the cellular tissues. Re-
commend draining. It is better
than all the remedial agents"
Commissioner of Georgia says ::
"I' regret to say that I know OF
no remedy that has proven effective.
Much may be done by the selection
of high dry rolling land, not too
rich in humus, but well fertilized,
and hardy and especially early ma
turing varieties. The Bill Dallas
wheat has considerable reputation
in this State as a hardy variety, re-
sisting rust in ordinary seasons.
Prof. Shepard, Chemist for the
South Carolina Department of Ag-
riculture, enclosing the following
from Morton's Cyclopedia OF Ag-
riculture says, ''My own opinion is
that there is great choice in va
rieties of wheat for different CHI
mates, some doing well where
others are liable to sicken a high
state of cultivation, producing very
healthy plants, would seem to be
the best preventive.
s'Most cereals, and many pasture
grasses, are subject to 8 disease
which is known by the name rust,
red gum, red rag, red robin, etc.
It is more common on the leaves,
on which it is visible in the form Of
orange colored, mealy spots, but it
is by no means confined to them.
AS long as the leayes only are ct
tackled, it is in general of little con-
sequence to the farmer, but when
it attacks the glumes and other
parts of the inforescent, as is the
case more especially, in many fine
Wheats, it often becomes serious
evil. It is perhaps consequence
of the varieties of wheat cultivated
on the Continent being more sub
ject to be injured by rust that it is
so much more dreaded abroad than
with ourselves. We have, how
ever, seen corn in gardens rem
dered entirely unproductive by it.
sThe rust is produced by a spe
cies of fungus, known to botanists
by the name of uredo ru6lqa vera,
consisting of the fine myceloid
threads running amongst the tis-
sues, and giving rise to ovate,
slightly echinulate spores. It has
been questioned whether it is not
in fact an early stage Of the COM
mon wheat mildew, Puccinla grant,
MS, but it seems now pretty well
ascertained that this is not the case,
though it is certain that uredo
laneari is really the infant state of
that fungus. Spores of rust may
occasionally occur in the same spot
with those of the puccinis, but it
is well known that two species of
uredo or two of puccinia sometimes
grow together and the case Of the
mildew of brambles and burnet in
which parasites Of considerable
size belonging to the genera aregma
and xenonochus grow intermi1ed
with the spores of uredo, shows
the same to hold good with more
highly organized genera. No rem
edy is known against the attacks of
rust. Like the wheat-mildew, it
has at present at least, bahed, d,e7e-
ry attempt. Rank manures GER
tainly aggravate the disease as
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