THE SMUT OF OATS 



393 



The Smut of Oats.' — The Smut of the Oats is probably the 

 most common and destructive one of the Smut group. The 

 mycelium of the Oat Smut gets started in the tissues of the Oat 

 plant when the latter is in the seedling stage, and at flowering 



Fi<3 350 _ Loose Smut of Oats. Left, normal head; tight; head 

 destroyed by Smut. After BuLletin 112, Minnesota Agr. Exp. bta. 



time it masses in the ovaries, which become swollen and finally 

 destroyed and replaced by masses of spores {Fig. 350). A 



1 The following references wiE be found helpful in understanding the 

 smuts and methods of combatting them. ^^ „ ^ ^ ,. . ,..,.<. ISPS 



The Grain Smuts. Farmers' BvlUttn 7B, U. S^Dept of ^^^^^^^' IS^^. 



?rprtion^rsTS1iu;Sth^^^^^^^^ 



The Smuts of Wheat, Oats, Barley, and Com. Farmers' BulleHr. 507, U. S. 

 ^tun'^SlS Jmut of Wheat. Bvlletin m, Washington Agr. Exp. Sta., 

 1915. 



