Dec, 1909.] 



OATS, BARLEY, WHEAT AND RYE. 



147 



OAT SMUT. 



Like the rust, the oat smut is a fungus disease which becomes 

 conspicuous at blossoming time. The fungus is so easily recog- 

 nized by the dirty, black, powdery^ appearance of the diseased 

 panicles that no description of it is thought necessary in this 

 connection. The loss from smut is much greater than is com- 

 monly supposed for three reasons : 



1. The smutted stalks are usually shorter than the healthy 

 ones, and are therefore not so easily observed. 



2. The sheath leaves sometimes hide the smutted heads, which 

 are then considered only as immature or barren plants. 



3. The smut ripens several days before the healthy oats, and, 

 unless the field is examined before cutting, many of the smut 

 spores will have been blown away and the smutted stalks conse- 

 quently overlooked. 



In the earlier tests of the oat varieties at this station it was 

 found that the percentage of smutted heads varied from 2 to 17 

 per cent., and that not a single commercial variety was free from 

 it. During the past three seasons we have taken the precaution 

 to treat all of our seed oats with formalin with the result that 

 in only a very few cases have any smutted heads been found. 



Formalin Treatment. — Take as many gallons of water as you 

 have bushels of oats to treat. For each 12 gallons of water add 

 one quarter pound of concentrated *formalin and mix thoroly. 



• Concentrated formalin is a forty per cent, solution of formaldehyde gas Ib 

 water. The liquid is clear and resembles water, except that it has a very sharp, 

 pungent, penetrating odor. In buying, the concentrated or forty per cent, solution, 

 should be insisted upon. 



