On Smut in Wheat 23 



rate description of it, with the remedies used by the Eng- 

 lish agriculturalists ; and as I had determined on endea- 

 vouring to prevent a recurrence of the disease in my 

 succeeding crops, I was governed by my own judgment 

 in the choice of the remedies there prescribed, the prin- 

 cipal of which is washing or steeping the seed previously 

 to sowing m lime water, pickel, a solution of arsenic, or 

 diluted sulphuric acid. For chcvnical reasons, I preferred 

 the last mentioned article. I accordingly, at the approach 

 of seed time, prepared my seed wheat nearly as directed 

 in the above mentioned pubHcation, viz : I took IJ lbs. 

 of sulphuric acid, to which I added from thirty to forty 

 times as much water, which I found sufficient to float one 

 bushel of the seed at a time, and after agitating it well in 

 the liquid, and skimming off the smut grains,! drained it in 

 a large basket, and then dried it on a floor in an airy apart- 

 ment. I found it necessary to stir the heap frequently to 

 promote the drying. I found the above quantity of acid 

 sufficient for the preparation of nine or ten bushels of 

 wheat, when economically used. The drying of the seed 

 was necessary to prevent the acid from injuring the 

 hands, clothes, &c. of the person sowing it. This seed 

 I sowed in the autumn of 1815, but not having prepared 

 quite seed enough for sowing all the ground I had allot- 

 ted for wheat, I took from my granary a sufficiency of the 

 same parcel, out of which that prepared had been taken, 

 and without any washing or preparation whatever, finish- 

 ed sowing the remaining ground, which was about twenty 

 rods long by one wide. I'he result on the succeeding 

 harvest was highly gratifying. I then found that ail the 

 grain where the seed had been prepared with the acid 

 was entirely clear of the smut, and of a fine quality; while 

 that from the unwashed seed was much injured : I am 

 of opinion one-third was destroyed by smut, and altogether 

 unfit for making flour till washed as before mentioned. I 



