Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1890-11-20
Treatment for Smutin Wheat aud

tener than once In two years In any state
ana tornadOeS are no. as DIES tructIye of
life as thundarstorms.
Treatment for Smut in Wheat and Oats
If wheat to be used for seed is suspected
OF containing any germs of smut, it should
be put through treatment with copper
sulphate blue vltIol or blue stone, but not
copperas, which is a different substance
and ineffective) or with hot water. The
copper sulphate treatment consists In Dip
ping the seed into a solution of one pound
to one g lion of water. letting it remain
five minutes with constant STIRRING to wet
the grain event Y, and then sprea ling on a
floor TO dry, or shoveling over with the adj
dltlon of land plaster and Stacked lime
until dry. The method is not trouble
some or costly and is effective. The treat
ment will prevent all or nearly all occur
renee of smut in the crop following; it will
also. however, somewhat retard the early
growth of the grain and may somewhat
decrease the yield. A test of the hot wa
ter and copper sulphate methods applied
to the cats was carried out on the Purdue
lind. university station farm under the
supervision of Prof W. c. Latta. The
facilities for making the tests were only
such as any farmer has at hand, the work
being done by the farm laborers, who are
Of the same class of workmen that are err
ployed on other farms Although the pro-
cess Is a very simple one, yet a description
of the exact method of handling the SEED
may be of service to others who contem-
plate the treatment of their own seed
grain. Prof. Latta has written out the
following account of work done on the
station farm: I'm treating our seed last
spring we used cold rain water with one
pound of copper sulphate to one gallon OF
water. A common washtub was filled
about two-thirds full of water, and enough
finely powered copper sulphate put in to
give the strength just stated. A bushel OF
seed wheat was put into coffee sack
(any sack made OF coarse open cloth will
do tied near the top of the sack and
immersed FIVE times in the copper
sulphate solution, turning and kneading
the sack so AS to thoroughly wet all the
seed.
The sack was then placed on bars across
the top of the tub to drain minute, after
| which the seed was spread thinly on an
airy floor. The process was repeated with
another bushel of seed and so on until
enough had been treated. To hasten the
drying and prevent much swelling OF the
| seed it was busted heavily and repeatedly
! with land plaster (pulverized air-slacked
lime will answer as welD. and mixed
thoroughly. 1t is well to continue the
stirring every few minutes for few hours,
and II the seed can be exposed meanwhile
to the sun, or In good current of air SC
much the better. As each bushel will
take up part Of the solution, it must be
replenished from time to time, adding
both water and copper sulphate in the
proper proportions. Be sure that the cop
per SUI phate is finely pow Tered, or the So
luton will be too weak at first and to
strong at last. A man and boy can treat
six or eight bushels oiseed in an hour In
treating this hot water we filed two wash
tubs, each about two-5hirds full, keeping
| No. | at 125 degree to 1870 degrees Fahren-
heit ana No. 2 at $50 degrees to 1873 de-
grees Fahrenheit. The present season re-
suits show that the water in tub No.
should have oeen kept nearly FIVE degrees
hotter.) The seed indosed In sack as in
copper su phate treatment was Immersed
In tub No. |, then d1ained a few seconds
! and Immersed five minutes in the No. 2
The first tub was nsed simply to warm the
seed and prevent predicting the temporal
ture below 1870 degree. in the second tue.
The seed was spread and dried as in the
treatment with copper solphate. Care
must be taken to add hot water from time to
time to make the proper temperature. This
treatment has the advantage of fastening
the sprouting and early growth, while the
copper sui phate retarb the termination
From all the data at hand the Indiana
Station arrives at the conclusion that to
treat seed wheat with not water in order
to prevent smut it should be immersed in
water for five minutes at 1875 degrees
| Fahrenheit; if the temperature drop below
| this point the seed should left in the water
| a little longer time, ard if the temperat-
ure rises above it, thesime should be short
ened. A greater variation than five de-
grees above or below the 1876 degrees Fab
renheit should be guarded against The
practical details of the operations are the
same as for oats given in the foregoing
with the exception that water is used with
out the addition of copper sulphate. The
hot water treatment is to be preferred, as
it does not retard termination.