166 FIELD CROPS 



yet met with very promising results. Other helpful meas- 

 ures are drainage, the use of early-maturing varieties, and 

 the eradication of weeds. 



205. Smut. Smut is a fungous disease which attacks 

 the wheat crop and causes very heavy loss. The smut 

 plant grows within the wheat plant and produces masses of 

 spores in the head where the kernels of grain should be 

 produced. The whole head is generally attacked, and 

 usually all the heads of a plant, which latter fact is a strong 

 indication that the infection comes from the seed, or enters 

 the plant at a very early stage in its growth. There are two 

 kinds of smut that attack wheat; one the loose smut, which 

 destroys the entire glume and kernel, leaving the rachis 

 naked; and the stinking smut, which simply produces within 

 the apparently healthy glumes a smut ball in place of a 

 kernel of wheat. Both of these smuts are very destructive. 



Stinking smut is controlled by treating the seed before 

 sowing. The most simple and practical method is to moisten 

 the wheat with a solution made by mixing 1 pint of 40 per 

 cent formaldehyde with 45 gallons of water. Wheat may 

 be dipped in the solution in baskets or loosely-woven sacks. 

 It may be run through the solution by means of a smut 

 machine, or the solution may be sprinkled over the seed by 

 means of a sprinkling can, the wheat being shoveled over 

 several times during the process to insure the thorough 

 moistening of each kernel. The smut spores are on the out- 

 side of the kernels, and all that is required is to bring the 

 solution in contact with them. Loose smut is very difficult 

 to handle, as the spores get into the open flowers and become 

 enclosed within the wheat kernel. The only treatment that 

 is effective is the modified hot water treatment, which is 

 extremely difficult to apply. The wheat is soaked for four 



