The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1914-04-17

The total annual loss from cereai
diseases in the United States - esli-
mated to be s45. 100000. Moreover, over
one-half or nearly s25.60O.OOO tof this
loss is caused by preventabie Diseases
remedies for which have been oe'ei
oped and placed in usable form ior
the farmers by state and federal au-
thorities.
Tho department OF agriculture,
throngh the office OF cereal inyestl-
cations of the bureau OF plant ihous-
try. has specialists In grain diseases
working In laboratory, field and green
house in an effort to solve many SCI
entific and practical problems Oh uis-
ease control which confront the
grower of cereals. The state experi-
ment stations of Minnesota, Kansas
and Washington are cooperating WIN
the department with a view Oh CON
trolling and eliminating plant ois-
eases that are causing such an ehor-
mons loss in the grain fields. In al
dition. a well-equipped laboratory Is
maintained at Washington. where MI
croscopic. cultural and other studies
of the disease-causing organisms are
carried on during the greater part OIL
the year.
While rusts and smuts of cereals
are perhaps the most widely dlstrlD-
uted and most harmful diseases winch
have been studied. there is another
class of cases" which our plant doc
eases are commonly called scaps'
willis. bhghts and number OF other
poouiar names. They are nearly all
OF them properly called soil diseases
because their spores have the power
of living in the soil. ss well as on the
stray leaf or seed OF their host plant
They are caused. as is the case with
rusts and smuts. by parasitic fungous
plants which get their nourishment
from our cultivated green plants.
Among the preyentable cereal dis
eases is the sinking smut, or Dunt
in wheat. common in all grain-growing
sections and especially troublesome IN
the Palouse country of the northwest
where ii is harder to control, owing
TO the fact that IL lives over winter In
the soil. The estimated average an
aual loss is two per cent OF the crop
This smut is easily distinguished in
the field when the grain is almost ripe.
The smutted plants are usually slight
iy stunted and the heads stand more
erect than the heavy, sound heads
The chan is spread apart more or less
by the dark, swollen kernels, giving
the head an open appearance. When
the tough membrane, or skin, of such
a kernel is broken, a dark, smeary
dust-like mass is disclosed which has
peculiar fetid odor like that of de
cayed fish.
The smut can be controlled and
practically gotten rid of by any one OF
the seed treatments which have beer
worked out and recommended for g
number of years by the state expert
ment stations. OF these the forma
I'm treatment is probably the best
There are several ways of applying
this treatment 1t may be either
sprayed on the grain or the grain ma.
be soaked in the solution. The fol
lowing method of treatment Is recon
mended by the Washington expert
ment station:
Construct a water-tight trough
feet long. IA inches deep and "a inche
wide. Fill this two-thirds full of tn
formalin solution, which has beer
made up by dissolving one pint &
pound) of 30 per cent. formaldehyd
In 40 gallons of water Into this pou
slowly the seed wheat until the trougl
Is nearly half full of grain. Then SIT
thoroughly with long-handle shove
In order to float to the surface an
smut balls that may have been cal
ried in by the grain. These shout
be skinned of and destroyed. Leay
the grain in the solution about one
half hour II may then be lifted on
and piled up on a granary floor Or o
the bottom of a wagon box and Co
cred with moist sacks. where il is le
over night. On the following mornin
n will be ready to SOW. II it is d.
sired 10 SOW the grain In dry cond
zion. il will be necessary TO spread Ia
treated seed out on the floor to
depth OF two or three inches. stirrin
frequently order TO hasten the dr.
ing process X the rs sown we
allowance should de for i
swollen condition b. ting the dri
TO SOW larger Quarll-y per acre.
The oat smut. another destructiV
disease. is widely distyi ted. son
fields having shown az N rs
per cent of smutted heads. 4stimat,
average annual loss iH about two p
cent OF the crop. This smut is mo
easily noticed little before the era
Is ripe. when smutted plants are -four
20 be shorter and 10 stand more ere
than sound ones In place OF q
kernels there are dark masses Of SIN
dust which. sometimes. are covered
the chan or glumes and sometimes a
left FULLY exposed and are then SO
~o-~~-~-~~~~ -~~~-~~~~o-~~O-~~~-~~~~~-
zoe a God in Japan.
uiet Takahashi. the quaint son
.~f..,, whc attends William Jew