1882.] FUNGI INJURIOUS TO VEGETATION. 167 



the oat may be gathered in almost any field of this grain; the 

 abundance of it varying in different localities and from year to 

 year. The presence of a smutted grain in a field is in just so far 

 a loss, and if in large quantities it is a positive evil to stock that 

 feed upon it. A preparation is made from smut which is a power- 

 ful medicinal agent, and is employed in place of ergot, or "spurred 

 rye," the parasitic fungus which grows upon the rye. This latter 

 is a well-known csuse of abortion in cows, and a similar result 

 may be expected from the various smuts when eaten in large quan- 

 tities. 



All perso^iS who suffer from smut upon their grain desire to 

 know the remedy or remedies, and this is a part of the subject 

 very difiicult to treat. The smut plant is so small in its beginnings, 

 and also so rapid in its growth, that its presence is not known upon 

 the grain until its destructive work is done. If the smut enters 

 the plant from spores which cling to, and are sown with, the grain, 

 it is to be expected that a thorough cleaning of the grain would 

 be a proper precaution. The application of any substance that 

 would kill the spores and not injure the grain naturally suggests 

 itself. The soaking of the grain in a solution of sulphate of cop- 

 per (blue vitriol), followed by an application of lime, has proved 

 of value. Precautionary measures of this nature are all that seem 

 to be within the reach of the farmer. If the spores can be kept 

 from finding their way to the growing grain the smut will not 

 appear. With corn the best way to rid the field of smut is to pass 

 through it and gather and burn all the afiiected ears and stalks. 

 In this way the many millions of spores are kept from being spread 

 and continuing the pest. With the smaller grains, as wheat and 

 oats, this method, though it is the most effective, would probably 

 be impracticable. 



The Onion Smut. 



A few localities in the Eastern States have long been known as 

 the centers of the onion crop. In some of these, where the onion 

 has been the chief product for the last half century, the culture 

 has within the past few years greatly diminished, and in some cases 

 it has been altogether abandoned. This change is due to the ap- 

 pearance of a destructive pest in the form of a fungus known as 

 the onion smut. This smut makes its appearance while the 

 onions are quite small, and if they are not entirely destroyed, are 

 of very little value. A careful examination of a diseased plant in 



