Devils Lake inter-ocean. (Devils Lake, N.D.) 1909-1915, 1912-10-04

purpose DIS SlmllaE gram WHICH mas
been harvested dry and hare. tbs a.
known fact that grain which is allow
ed to become damp and soft atJhar-
vest time never does yield as well as
hard grain, even though the first
sprouting or termination of the soft
ened grain does not seem to be ma.
terially affected. ~ & #
Our seed and laboratory studies
have given some new light on the
subject. These are some Of the facts:
l. If a field of. wheat Of the same
quality is harvested in different ways
so that one portion is saved compare
lively dry while the other is allowed
to get wet in the shock, the wet grain
is found to be more or less bleached
70 blisteres, musty or mouldy and off
grade as to color and hardness, while
similar grain from same area which
hsa been stored under cock covers,
catsked while dry in other manner is
ofund to be hard and bright colored
and spoken of as of high grade true
to color and hardness. %h, '"A..@"
2. The roots of the young plants
which grow from the hard grains are
apt to come pure and white and COM
paratively free from disease when
planted upon clean land.
8. 1t is practically impossible to
disinfect the seed from the grain
which has been allowed to, become
wet in the shock or in the bin so as
to produce a comparative healthy
growth of roots. If both Of the types
of seed are disinfected in the usual
manner and planted the same day up
on the same clean soil it is observed
that the seed from the grain which
was allowed to become damp and more
or less mouldy in the shocks does not
stool as in the case of the hard seed
which has also been disinfected. The
secondary stools come out blighted,
tip burned .ar
I. 4. The plants which come from the
disinfected seed which was wet in
the shock carry with them more of
the various types Of root diseases in
the various ages of development than
are to be seen upon the plants from
the disinfected hard, dry seed.
s. The percentage of plants which
produce poorly filled heads Is very
much greater in the case of the crop
which came from the soft or wet seed
than in the case of the crop which
came from the hard lot. +
These facts hold true with reference
to fax. If a good crop of mature flax
is harvested in such manner that one
half of it is saved and threshed dry.
while the other half is harvested III
such manner as to allow the crp7a5 TO
become niouldy or .nlusty in the b IA.
4 dies or punches the crop from the dry
seed my be graded and so dislnfected
that it will be good seed for sowing
purposes and very little, if any, dis
ease will be carried to the new land
On the other hand, that which was al
lowed to get mouldy and musty in the
bundles is bound to produce seed Of
a security. mouldy, eruptive appearance
and we find that the interior of sucf
seed is more or less filled, especially
under the seed coats, with the moulds
mildews or filaments Of the tung
which produce the disease known a:
wilt and canker. Such filaments are
usually so well protected by the mucl
laee or the seed coats that no nethot
of disinfecting can reach them with
out destroying the termination powe
of the seed. Thus fax seed which hal
been allowed to get wet and mould
, he bundles is difficult to treat ant
disinfect, so as to prevent the intro
duction of disease into the soil Of new
} lands. '"2 % 2 =
It is evident, therefore, that one Q
the chief injuries occasioned by tn
wetting of the seed grain in the shocl
; or bin is due to the opportunity give1
to the root diseases, whether OF haa
wheat or other cereal, to grow into
;mbed themselves in the seeds in sue
} manner that the plants which com CON
from such seed are mmediately a.
. tackled and the diseases introduce
) into the new land areas.
These facts, in part, help to explai
the very good crop Of the present seq
son. During the two dry seasons 9
4 1910 and 1911 the conditions were nc
at all favorable for the developmer
Of such parasitic fungi in the stra'
, and upon the seed. In 1911, in pa
! ticular, the seed harvested was plumb
J. bright, hard and dry and there we
], a comparatively small amount OF di
8 ease introduced this year with Il
2 seed. AS a eauence, in properl
Il worked lands and in the new Ian lant
4 Of the state the crop from the sta