The Dickinson press., 1905-03-11
Seed Treatment to Prevent Diseases In
Field Crops-The Use Of for.
~maldohydo.
BY H. L. bobby,

BY H. L. bobby,
Botanist and Plant Pathologist of the
North Dakota Agricultural College
and Experiment Station.
Why Treat. Smut, wilt, blight, rot
and other diseases attack the crops by
way of the seed. The purpose of seed
treatment is to kill the spores of disease
which are on the seeds, without injuring
the terminating power of the seed.
The treatment which we recommend
prevents disease, hastens maturity and
increases the yield.
The proper strength of solution. If
less than the strength recommended is
used, the disease-producing spores will
not be destroyed. If a stronger solution
is used the seed will be injured or
killed. Tomake the solution, add six
teen avoirdupois ounces of 40 per cent"
formaldehyde to forty or forty-ive gal
Ions of water.
For wheat. Dip, sprinkle and shovel,
spray. or run through a dipping machine,
indeed, in any way so that all of the
grains become damp over the entire
surface. Avoid using too much solution.
Too much only softens and swells the
seed and Injuries it. All one wishes il to
kill the Smut spores. 1t takes about
thre e-fourths gallon of solution per
bushel of wheat.
For oats, barley and millet. In these
grains the smut spores ri lodged inside
the chaff scales. The treatment must
be thorough enough so that the solution
can soak between the scales. Dipping
is all right for these grains, but it pays
to shovel the grain over several times to
insure the even distribution of the
liquid. If the sprinkling and shoveling
method is used, the grain should be
shoveled thoroughly, and be wet up
once or twice. These grains take about
one and one.half to two gallons Of solu-
ton per bushel.
For fax. to prevent wilt. Clean the
fax SO thoroughly that their is nothing
left in it but plump yellow seeds. The
treatment cannot kill the fungus in the
old straws, bits OF chaf and in the black.
shriveled seeds.
Apply the solution slowly and evenly,
with constant shoyeling to prevent mat
ting A small force pump with a finely
perforated nozzle, set to throw a misty
spray, does the best work. One-half
gallon of the solution should be used
per bushel of fax. More care must be
taken with fax than with other grains,
but the work is fast and easy. This
treatment has now been tried. by many
farmers and all report success. Do not
sow on old diseased fax ground; ro'
tate.
For orr or seeds Of any sort. Corn
sprouts slowly in cold soil. 1t is very
apt to decay because of the presence of
ordinary mould spores on the grains.
Farmers will find great improvement in
termination if the corn is washed in the
same strength of. solution that is used
for wheat or oats. We have found that
it gives fine results with many other
sorts of grass and garden seeds.
For potatoes, to prevent scab and
other infectious potato diseases Soak
the tubers one and one-half hours in a
solution made at the rate Of one pound
of formaldehyde to thirty gallons of
water. Then cut and plant az usual.
Do not plant potatoes after potatoes, for
potato diseases live a long time in the
soil.
Note. After treating any seed grain
with formaldehyde it pays to allow the
grain to remain piled for a few hours.
The xcess of the solution will be alb
sorbed, and the gas acts more effect.
lively.
The grain will SWELL some. BY meas.
uring before treating and again after
ward, n can decide how to set the
drill so as to SOW the proper amount.
Wheat svells about one-ifth to one
sixth in bulk.