2o6 



CROP PRODUCTION 



CoKN Smut 



Smut becomes appreciably destructive only when proper 

 crop rotation is neglected. 



Com Smut is familiar to every farmer and most gar- 

 deners; for it is especially troublesome in gardens where 

 sweet corn is grown year after year. The disease attacks 



both ears and tassels, 

 generally the former. 

 It first shows on the 

 ears as a white, mal- 

 formed mass, repre- 

 senting usually only 

 a portion of the ker- 

 nels. The mass soon 

 becomes darker and 

 finally develops into a blackish powder that consists of 

 millions of tiny spores. The disease is spread by these 

 spores which infest young plants. The pulHng and 

 burning of diseased plants and regular crop rotations 

 are effective preventives. 



Insect Enemies 



The corn plant has been much less fortunate in the 

 case of its insect enemies than in that of its fungous 

 foes. A host of sucking and biting insects prey upon 

 root, stalk, leaf, and ear, often causing enormous losses. 



The Com Root-worms are among the most serious of 

 these pests: there are two species, the Northern and the 

 Southern. The Northern Corn Root-worm infests most 

 of the corn belt. A small green beetle lays eggs in the 

 com fields in autumn. These eggs hatch in spring into 

 slender worms that attack the roots, and mature into 

 another generation of green beetles during the summer. 



