The DeSmet leader. (DeSmet, Kingsbury Co., Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1886-02-27

ttlNti NUN lllt non. lloldCS Davis.
) member of Congress from San Fran
cisco and the largest miller OF the
Pacific slope, in answer to inquiries on
the subject of smut in wheat in his
State:
In reply To yours of the 10th. In
early times we We're much troubled
with smutty wheat but have none now
owing tn the use of blue stone Oh the
seed by the farmers. have seen fields
where part of the seed was treated with
blue-stone and part not, and the differ
ence was rs plain as between a field of
barley and one of oats: il is hard to give
any exact rule as to It's application: the
most practical farmers tell me they use
six pounds to each ton of seed wheat
Ii is dissolved in water enough To wet
tins quantity of wheat. and the wheat
Is put IN bags, say fifty To sixty pounds.
AMI immersed in the solution for six or
seven minutes, just enough to wet All
the wheat Then it is taken out and
laid on sloping boards ut the end of the
trough I" drain The solution is put
iuto a trough built for this purpose
something like Il horse trough. The
bags are turned over frequently in this
solution to insure the wetting of all the
wheat. luu can rely upor il that blue
stone Is Il dead shot for smut in Cali
tornia. l,l blue-Stone mean suphate
OF copper or blue viIrol
If wheat is sown in old Stubble where
there was smut the previous year il will
make It's appearance 10 some extent.
bat the second year there will be no
sign of It, In new gronnd. or in fields
where wheat has not been raised for
two seasous or more there will be no
smut If the seed is prepared as above.
unless ii may he communicated from
| uclghhorlng fields where the seed has
not been treated for the purpose Of
killing smut germs. The cost of pre-
/ pairing the seed for one acre of ground
will not exceed th" loss on one blIshel
! Of Smutty wheat
! Below is an extract from letter on
the subject received from Prof +. w.
lIllgard, University of California, Col
lege of Agriculture. Berkeley, Cal:
AS regards the Questioning of seed
wheat, the solution used is as strong rs
it can be made at the ordinary tempera-
ture Such solution contains about
three pounds oi blue-Stone to five
quarts of water The time OF INNER
sion varies somewhat: the most definite
prescription given is that a half sack
should remain in the saturated solution
at least three minutes, and he turned
about several times in the interval to
make sure of wetting thoroughly.
When weaker solution is used. the
grain may he left with it until it begins
to sprout The sacks are usually left
unopened until used for sowing. There
is no driving done on purpose, unless it
is 10 be used in the seed drill. 1t will
work perfectly with the centrifugal
sower without drying In general |
would be in favor of the strong solution
and short immersion. The work is then
ward left in the sack for some hours the
application is sure to be effectual. !
Again. the strong solution is more cer- |
tain 10 render the grain more distaste- |
ful 10 birds and insect enemies, and /
gives margin for killing fungoid /
germs round about the young seeding. |
There seems TO be little danger to the |
vitality Of The seed from the blue-stone |
OF course the blue-ston will not pre-
vent the smut germs left over in the
fields from previous seasons from at |
tacking the developed plant. It simply |
Kills the germ IN the seed that would !
otherwise develop along with the latter
and take the plant in its early stages.
"A field that has been very smutty dur |
INC the previous season will be apt To |
show some on the grain of the next one |
despite blue stoning, but persistence i'm
the practice will he sure to put an end |
To the fungus germs, save so far as they |
may he furnished by kind neighbors |
above the wind
III W iol Sttti u Has |
been the practice of farmers in Europe |
To separate the small and imperfect |
grains and SOW the largest and most |
perfect berries This insures larger
yield and better quality. Tests have
been made in England where fields side
by side were planted three years i'm |
succession. and one gave three bushels |
The first year, five the second, and eight |
the third year more than the other, both |
ields being treated precisely the same
except in the seed. This has been tried
by farmers of Illinois 4 Iowa. and |
has resulted in their adopting this |
practice, getting larger yield and .
much better quality. These are all |
facts obtained 10y actual experience and |
tests made by practical farmers and |