18 CEREAL RUSTS OF THE UNITED STATES. 



by this rust in all the Southern States. Oats is seldom injured to any 

 extent. Isficaragua wheat, a durum variety, was totally destroyed in 

 1896 at the Agricultural College farm in Brazos County. The part of 

 the State in which rust seems to be most severe is that lying east 

 of Gainesville, Fort Worth, and Austin. 



Washmgton and Oregon. — Little information relative to cereal rusts 

 has been obtained from these States, but as far as known they cause 

 only slight damage, except in districts within reach of dampness from 

 the ocean. On account of the growing season being also the dry sea- 

 son, the atmosphere is not usually favorable to rust i^ropagation. 

 Occasionally oats is considerably aftected by the crown rust, as was 

 the case in 189;2 in Sherman County, Oregon. 



California. — Though reports indicate that rust does not commonly 

 injure the grain, still in some places both wheat and oats are severely 

 damaged. The losses seem to be confined almost wholly to the coast 

 districts within the influence of sea fogs. In other parts of the State' 

 the atmosphere is usually too dry for the rust to spread. In a few dis- 

 tricts along the coast, in parts of Ventura County, for instance, wheat 

 raising is said to have been abandoned on account of rust, but in some 

 districts, as in Mono, Fresno, and San Bernardino counties, rust is 

 extremely rare. Toward the north early wheat is reported by some to 

 be more liable to rust than late, perhaps on account of weakness from 

 winterkilling or frosts. Semihard or soft white wheats are generally 

 raised. Souora is a common variety and is said to be rather rust 

 resistant. Black oats, it is claimed, is more resistant than white. Some 

 of the counties in which rust seems to be especially plentiful are Santa 

 Clara, Ten tura, Sonoma, San Mateo, San Diego, and Santa Barbara. 



Montana^ Idaho, and Utah. — On account of the cool, dry atmosphere 

 in these States, the rusts seldom occur in sufficient abundance to do 

 any appreciable injury. 



Virginia. — According to reports, wheat in the Shenandoah Valley is 

 sometimes badly damaged by rust, and oats is damaged quite often. 

 The rust is most abundant in the lowlands. Lancaster wheat is 

 considered as rather rust resistant. 



Ol'lahoma.—V^^hhm the past three years Oklahoma has become an 

 important wheat producing territory, and in the season of 1897 much 

 injury resulted from rust. There was much rain near harvest time and 

 rust doubtless materially lessened the yield, although it was still very 

 large. In this region May wheat and soft varieties seem to be most 

 subject to rust aud Fulcaster and Turkey most resistant. 



LOSSES CAUSED BY RUST. 



Although several writers have discussed the question of financial 

 losses from the grain rusts in difterent countries, including the United 

 States, there are as yet no reliable estimates. Could even an approxi- 

 mate estimate of the losses in this country be made it would be very 

 gratifying, but as yet even this can not be done. It would of course 



