in Oats and Barley. 
405 
A quantity of similarly disinfected barley was soaked for half 
an hour in water, and from the kernels the outer coat was 
removed with a knife. Smut spores from barley were then 
applied to half the kernels before they were sown (A.) ; the other 
half was sown without the application of smut spores (B.). The 
subjoined was the result : — 
A. produced 27 per cent, smutted ears. 
B. „ ..... 1 „ „ 
I further found that oats can be infected without removing the 
husk by dipping them into water charged with smut spores, 
although dusting the dry spores on the seed is as a rule without 
appreciable result. Thus : — 
Oats dipped in spore-charged water produced . 29 per cent, smutted ears. 
Oats dusted with dry spores .... 0 „ „ 
B. — Vaeieties of Smut. 
Is the smut which affects barley, oats, and wheat the same 
fungus, or are there more than one species of smut ? As long 
as no certain method of infecting these cereal plants with smut 
was known, this question could not be answered by botanists, 
because the spores produced on barley, oats, and wheat resemble 
one another so closely under the microscope as to be practically 
indistinguishable. Still some botanists have doubted their iden- 
tity. I have this year conducted some experiments upon this 
point. Spores of these smuts were applied to the bare kernels 
of their respective host-plants, with the following results : — 
Oat Smut. 
per cent. 
Spores from smutted Oats on bare kernels of oats gave 21 smutted ears. 
„ „ „ barley „ 0 „ 
„ „ „ wheat „ 0 „ 
Barley Sinut. 
Spores from smutted Barley on bare kernels of barley „ 26 „ 
„ „ oats „ 0 ,, 
„ „ „ wheat „ 0 „ 
Wheat Smut. 
Spores for smutted Wheat on wheat kernels . . „ 1 „ 
„ „ oata „ . . „ 0 „ 
» Parley „ . . „ 0 
From the above it seems clear that if these smuts are nofc 
different species they are at least well-marked varieties, although 
their spores and the manner in which they germinate are in 
the present state of our knowledge indistinguishable. To the 
