18770 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



^21 



rust sporiiles— their germination and their 

 growth. Wlierever the .siu-face of a stalk, a 

 leaf or afniit, from any cause, iiccomes abra- 

 ded or scarilied, tliere deconiposilion will be- 

 gin, and where decomposition begins there 

 also will l)e the conditions favorable to the 

 development of rn.st. Kust may also be de- 

 veloped on plants that have become enervated 

 or weakened tliron},'h diseases, which have 

 l)een produced by other causes, and under 

 those circumstances mold and rust will be' en- 

 gendereil. But, these fun^oids may also be 

 developed upon the most rank iind healthy 

 looking plants. When graminaceous plants 

 grow very rank in a rich soil, that has not its 

 due i)roportion of the vitreous or silicious ele- 

 ments, the vitreous coating will be so e.\ceed- 

 ing thin that the rapid expansion of the leaf 

 or stem may fracture it, and thus exjtosed, 

 the rust will Iind a congenial clement for its 

 development. The spores of rust, of mildew, 

 of smut, of mold, and various other fungous 

 plants, are everywhere, and it is impossible 

 to guard against their iiresence. Tlie only 

 thing that can be done, is to guard against fur- 

 nishing conditions favorable to tlieir growth. 

 ITiider certain circumstances our bread and 

 other articles will mold, but we have ways of 

 arresting it or preventing it, by altering the 

 s\UTounding conditions— by ventilation, or re- 

 moving them to a dryer 'atmosphere. Hut, 

 tills is dead matter and cannot hel]i itself. 

 Wheat, whilst it is growing, is living matter, 

 and can protect itself, if we but f\n-nish the 

 material for its protection. To illustrate how 

 penetrable the minute spores of rust and mold 

 are, I may mention the case of the "Seven- 

 teen-year cicada," or locust, that appeared 

 here so plentifully in 1808. Many of these 

 insects died prematurely, and their death was 

 caused by a species of fungus which was de- 

 veloped in the internal cavity of theabdomen. 

 Now, insects do not breathe through the 

 mouth, but through traclirc or breathing holes 

 arranged along their sides, and through these 

 they inhale the fungous spores. Dr. Jos. 

 Leidy, of Philadelphia, by the aid of a power- 

 ful microscope, discovered that these "locu.sts" 

 contained trees with roots and branches, l)ear- 

 ing cai)sules or cells; and he could even see 

 tliem burst open and scatter their spores abroad. 



" Rust" belongs to the genus Z/rtiZo, the fami- 

 ly Crcemace^, and is generally confined to the 

 gi-amince, the grain bearing plants, or grasses. 

 A subdivision.of the family includes the Uke- 

 DIN'ES, of which the genus Urcdo is the type, 

 and these usually attack the wheat, oats, rye, 

 barley, &c. The particular species which at- 

 tacks the wheat, according to authors on the 

 subject, is the Uredo ruhiijo vera, of DeCan- 

 dolie, wluch literally indicates a red blasting 

 blight, or rust, on trees and plants. It is de- 

 veloped on both sides of the leaves ; upon the 

 stalk, or stubble, and upon the ears, or 

 "heads," as we usually call them. It has the 

 appearance of little oval points projecting 

 like grains of dust ; at first yellowish, then 

 redish, but afterwards becoming dark or 

 black. The little streaks which it at tir.st 

 fomis, in parallel lines, at the sides of the 

 libers, finally spread, and joining each other, 

 form large patches. AVhen the rust attacks 

 the grain only feebly, it does not appear to be 

 very injurious to it, but when it is considera- 

 ble it often occasions severe losses. It is al- 

 leged that among all the graminte wheat ap- 

 pears to be the special favorite of rust. 



Mr. Klippart, of the State Board of Agricul- 

 ture of Ohio, whom I have mainly consulted 

 in preparing this paper, s.ays : "If the streaks 

 formed by the rust be attentively examined 

 upon the stalk, but particularly upon the leaf 

 of the wheat, the vitreous epidermis will be 

 found split in every instance, and it will not 

 be difficult to perceive that tlie sap, extravas- 

 atcd or forced out of their proi)er vessels 

 through these splits, gives birth to the fungus, 

 known as rust ; or at least, that they serve 

 as receptacles to the spores of the fungus, 

 which are either carried through the air by 

 the winds, raised from the ground by the 

 rains, or are absorbed in the earth with the 

 nourishing juices of the plant. It has often 



been observed that rust ordinarily shows itself 

 when very hot sunshine suddenly succeeds 

 rains, which have been somewhat prolonged. 

 It is at this time, when the evaporation from 

 the stalks and leaves goes on too rapidly, 

 that till! cracks in their vitreous epidermis oir- 

 cur, ])ermitting the sap to dellect from Its ordi- 

 nary course, and thus the circumstances 

 tavorable to the fungus are i)resented to its 

 spores, and their germination is developed, 

 whether they <M)nu' from the interior or ex- 

 terior. The tenacity of these fungivorous 

 si)ores is very remarkable. Take, for instance, 

 the spores of the common mushroom, which 

 are sold in sipiarc niius,ses called "brick.s. " I 

 once read an account of one of these bricks 

 being used as a wedge in a pipe hole that was 

 too large for the pipe, and after remaining 

 there all winter it afterw.ards germinated and 

 produced nuislirooms. They require heat, 

 moisture and air for their gernunation, and if 

 these bricks sometimes will not produce fungi, 

 it is because they either did not contain any 

 spores, were not healthy, or were not sur- 

 rounded by the proper conditions. It is the 

 same with those taken up in the circulation 

 of plants ; they may have moisture enough, 

 but not enough of heat and air to vitalize 

 them. The more then that heat and moisture 

 permit the sporules, or germs of rust to attach 

 themselves to the stalks of grain, and to 

 develop themselves there, the greater will be 

 the damage it will cause. From the lime that 

 a stalk of wheat is seriously attacked by rust 

 it begins to languish, its leaves soon dry up ; 

 and when rains are frequent, the malady jiro- 

 ceeds from the stalk to the head, which also 

 soon turns red, and afterwards black. Rust 

 is least injurious to grain the nearer it has 

 arrived at maturity before it is attacked. 

 Therefore, early ripening grain stands the best 

 chance of escapmg it, for it does not ordi- 

 narily show itself until later in the season. 



Wheat, somehow, has a good many contin- 

 gent perils to encounter. If sown early, it 

 stands a good chance of being attacked by the 

 " Hessian Fly ;" if sown late, it may encoun- 

 ter the "Midge," or the ield "Weevil," in 

 the early following summer, as well as the 

 rust. No immediate remedy for rust seems 

 to have been yet developed. In places where 

 rust Is most complained of, after all necessary 

 care of the ground has been taken by proper 

 drainage, as before stated, and more as a pre- 

 vention than a cure, lime, ashes and silex 

 should be freely used as a manure. But the 

 necessary judgment as to when and how much 

 of these elements should be used, involves 

 some knowledge of agricultural chemistry — 

 the analysis and composition of soils. 



It is also recommended that a field that had 

 been infected with ru.st, should not be sown 

 in grain liable to rust the following season. 

 And, as the earth is almost everywhere 

 charged with the spores of rust, and that the 

 wheat is infected as well by internal as by ex- 

 ternal appropriation, the seed wheat should 

 first be soaked in a solution of blue vitriol — in 

 the proportion of one pound of the salt to as 

 much water as will cover five bushels of wheat. 

 It should then be thoroughly mixed with finely 

 Iiulverized lime, so that each grain is coated 

 over with it, like a sugar-coated pill. If line 

 wood ashes are mixed with the lime it is 

 thought it would still be better. Seed pre- 

 pared in this way may be sown immediately, 

 or it may be kept for a number of days. 



In conclusion, gentlemen, I have not at- 

 tempted to teach you how to raise wheat. I 

 have only attempted to give you the opinions 

 of scientific men, as to " Wliat causes tlie rust 

 in Wheat .?" 



For The Lanoasteb Fahmur. 

 POTATOES WITHOUT PARIS GREEN. 



It has been said by some one that Paris 

 Green is the best and only reliable remedy to 

 destroy the Colorado potato-beetle, &c. I 

 think otherwise. I never use it and then I 

 run no risk in any way from the poison, and 

 I always get a fair crop of i)otatoes when the 

 season is favorable. But it requires consider- 

 able attention for awhile to save the i)lants. 



Thissea.son and last season I planted between 

 three and four acres in jiotatoes each time, 

 and although il looked as if the bugs would 

 eat them all before thc^y got above grotmd, 

 yet we mastered tlicni liet'on' tlicy done nuich 

 harm. We don't lioubU' our.selves much 

 about the lirst bugs that make their appear- 

 ance, but we begin to work our potatoes as 

 soon as we can .see the rows, so as to get the 

 rows in shape for oiu- plan of operations. 

 Then being jireparcd with a small Ijroom and 

 hanilh; about two feet long, and a good sized 

 tin wash lioilcr with a spade handler attached 

 to the middle of one of Uw. broad sides, some- 

 what like a ilipper, so that when I am stand- 

 ing at the row the mouth of the keltic will be 

 in proprr position to rccTive the bugs, which 

 1 send in withaslighl rap of my broom. 1 don't 

 stop to pick uj) any bugs that fall beside the 

 kettle, I leave thi'Ui for thi' next time. FIvery 

 few days I go over the patch again and keep 

 them thinned down .so that they doii't do 

 nnich harm, .\ljout four times going over 

 the patch at the right time will .save the crop. 

 I was about one and one-half days going over 

 it e.ach time, making in all aljout six days at 

 bug catching for three and one-half acres of 

 potatoes. I always ke))t an old lard can 

 with a lid on at the end of theiiatch, toemi)ty 

 the bugs into until 1 went home, aiul then I 

 .scalded them and biu-ird them in llu^ manure 

 l)ile. I think sometimes we caught nearly a 

 bushel of bugs at one going over the patch. 

 I would not lie bothered with handpicking 

 since they can be .so easily caught with a ket- 

 tle and broom. In this way children can 

 easily save a common potato iialcli for family 

 use. One man could manage ten acri's and 

 save them from the bugs, but could not be ex- 

 pected to do much else while keeping down 

 the bugs. The rows must be ridged close up 

 to the stalks so that the kettle will fit up 

 while the plants are small, or else many buga 

 will drop in the middle. A little practice 

 will soon enable a, person to pass along the 

 row at a pretty smart gait. If our experience 

 is worth anything you can have it freely. — J. 

 B. Erb, Lime Vallei/, Awj., 1877. 



For The Lancaster Fabher. 

 THE CROPS WE RAISE. HOW DO 

 THEY PAY? 



With the majority of farmers the raising of 

 any crop is done with the expectation that it 

 will pay in a pecuniary .sense, and with the 

 exception of experiments jiurely made to ad- 

 vance agricultural knowledge, this is the oidy 

 sensible view that can be taken. And yet 

 there are thousands of farmers who raise 

 crop after crop that does not pay, but which 

 they have an idea is profital)le ; the error 

 being that they do not charge certain things 

 against the cvoyi that ought by rights to be. 



There is some dilliculty in keeiting a strict 

 account with crops, as in the matter of fertil- 

 izing materials. It is not right that the 

 amount of such materials applied with the 

 crop be charged, but the amount taken up, 

 and this can in most cases be only approxi- 

 mately determined. 



The" difference in amount between the ap- 

 plication of fertilizing materials and their re- 

 moval determines whether a farm is improving 

 or running down — if the application is greater 

 than the removal, the farm is iin]iroving; but 

 when the crop takes u)) more than is applied, 

 then that farm is on the downward scale. 



There are some items in the raising of any 

 crop that are always the same, or very nearly 

 the same, be the yield large or small, and 

 these are taxes, interest on investment, and 

 the labor necessary to grow the crop and get 

 it n^ady for market. Of course a light crop 

 will not co.st quite as much to harvest, &c., 

 but the difference in most eases is very little. 



For the first exami)le let us take corn, 

 which is by most farmers considered, outside 

 of tobacco, as one of the crops in which 

 there is more money than nearly any other 

 crop that can be raised. 



To get at the true cost of any crop we must 

 know the value of the fertilizing materials 

 used. 



