STUDIES UPON THE ABSORPTION AND GERMINATION 

 OF WHEAT TREATED WITH FORMALDEHYDE. 



A. L. BAKKE AND H. H. PJLAGGE. 



Treating wheat with formaldehyde to prevent the covered or 

 stinking smut of wheat is a general practice wherever wheat is 

 grown. Henderson,^ Burmester^, Johnson^ and Brittlebank* have 

 submitted results of germination tests where wheat has been soaked 

 for varying periods, with the purpose of obtaining safe limits where 

 the fungus is killed, while the seed is left intact. Naturally this is 

 the important conception from the practical standpoint. But ad- 

 mitting this to be the case there are still many fundamental propo- 

 sitions which are still open for solution and of equal import to the 

 practical phases of grain treating to prevent smut and problems of 

 imbibition and of germination. 



While the authors were connected with the office of Cereal Investi- 

 gations* of the U. S. Department of Agriculture they assisted in 

 carrying on a campaign to prevent smut. This campaign consisted 

 largely in giving demonstrations and discussions on smut and the 

 means of prevention. Two outstanding propositions encountered 

 were (1) the time for maximum absorption to take place, (2) the 

 time in which seed can be kept in contact with formaldehyde and 

 still give the highest per cent germination. In practically all cases 

 wheat growers are advised to operate within the limits of safety 

 but they are nevertheless desirous of knowing where the limits are. 

 These facts then in themselves led the writers to submit the prob- 

 lems as suggested to a series of experiments, the results of which 

 are given in this paper. 



^Henderson, F. L., Experiments with wheat and oats for smut. Idaho 

 Agrl. Exp. Sta. Bui. 53, 1906. 



=Burmester, H., Vergleichende Utersuchungen ueber den Einfluss der 

 verschiednen Samenheizmethoden auf die pilztotende Wirkung. Zitschr 

 Pflanzenkrank. IS: 154-187, 1908. 



'Johnson, J. C, Influence of "pickling" on the germination of cereals. 

 Jour. Bd. Agr. (London) 20: 120-124, 1913. 



^Brittlebank, C. C, The effect of formalin and copper sulphate on the 

 germination of wheat. Jour. Dept. Agr. Victoria 11: 473-76, 2 figs. 1913. 



•This work was under the immediate charge of Dr. G. M. Reed, then of 

 the University of Missouri, but now with the U. S. Dept. of Agriculture, 

 Office of Cereal Investigations. 



