Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1905-10-06

mad the Following article In Science OF
Sept, 18th: 5s s.;ss .l4s !, I'll MI.
There are many species of the rust
parasites (Uredinales) found upon
cereals. Almost every type Of cult
waited grain Is attacked by its own
particular type or form Of rust These
rusts are minute. thread like, flament-
GUS affairs. The threads are very
much more minute than the branching
spawn met with in mushroom culture.
The threads branch very generally and
spread through the tissues of the host
plant in various directions. They are
able to penetrate all of the soft parts
of the plants upon which they live. It
has usually been supposed that the
threads did not spread far from each
point Of new infection. The filaments
usually gain admission to the tissues
of the leaves and stems by .eroding
or boring through the skin layer from
the outside. Later the branching fila
ments become massed at certain
points under the skin layer of the host
plant. They then produce countless
numbers of small ovoid or rounded
bodies called spores. These spores
are cut off or rounded off from the
Iends of the filaments, pressing out
wan. under the skin layer of the,
host. AS the spores mature, the size
enlarges, and thus the skin or epider-
mis- Of the host plant is broken and
pushed outward. This allows the
spores access to the air and they are:
then carried by the wind and other
agencies from plant to plant and from
field to field, perhaps hundreds of
miles by wind storms. Countless
numbers fall to the ground and do no
harm; but countless numbers are pro-
duced and thus some of them are sure
to reach other host plants. This is
the usual method of accounting for the
spread of wheat rust
It has usually been assumed that
rusts grow only in the leaves and
stems tyegetative parts) of their
hosts, but gradually it has been.
learned that amongst many perennials,
certain weeds and shrubs these para
sites send their ilaments {hypha) into
other more permanent structures, as,
for example, roots and woody stems,
thus becoming perennial with the
host. Observations and experiments
at this experiment station have graduI
ally convinced MS Of the probability
that rust Of wheat may sometimes
thus persist. Our field experiments
have often suggested that rust, at
times, either attacks wheat from the
soil in some form or manner; not now
known, as characteristic of the life
history of rust, or that it may come in
some manner from the seed. This will
at once Suggest to those who are
familiar with the investigations upon
the rusts Of cereals, the studies con-
Quoted by Professor Erickson Of stock
holm. and his old and undemonstrat-
able mycoplasm theory. That author
by his experiments seems to have
demonstr that In some manner a
rust Of wheat (Puccinia glumar11m) of
that region can be transmitted by the
seeds, and claims to have demon
strated by structure studies certain
microp otoplasmic bodies directly as
ISOLATED with the cellular structure of
the young wheat plant in such a man
ner that they are able to transmit the
rust infection by finally Transforming
into Harmonious structures In the
aftergrowth from the embryo.
Through PERSISTENT studies upon this
phase Of the rust question we are now
liable to point out a more rational possi-
BILE explanation Of the transmission Of
rust through the seed Of wheat, IL It
ever 10 really transmitted in that man.
ner. Professor Erickson in his expert.
ments enclosed wheat from the time
| 1T was seeded until the time OF ma
turity DIN certain germ proof glass
cages and found that rust still an
peared in the crol Bolley at the
North Dakota experiment station sew
eral times dup. Gated this work. He
used sound wheat grains externally.
treated and in no case was able to
secure rust under the conditions Of
culture that is, was unable. to cen.
firm the results OF Ericksons. It ID
possible that the wrong kind OF wheat
was selected 10 order to prove this
work In the ezperiments lust cited.
Bolley used the best selected grains 81
2 particular kind Of wheat which was
known TO rust easily. 1t was not cor.
tain, however, that the grains used had
grown on rustattacked mother plants.
Late observations ct the North Dakota
experiment station botanical labora-
tory, In which numerous samples 81
wheat harvested from the badly rg,sted