926 
Journal of Agricultural Research 
Vol. XXVII, No. I* 
Germany, Austria, Hungary, Switzerland, Italy, Sweden, Holland, 
England, and Australia. Byars (6) found galls in wheat from Russia, 
India, China, and Turkestan. Avema-Sacca (2, p. 234) observed the 
disease in Brazil in 1912. Among the British African colonies and pro¬ 
tectorates, Dr. E. J. Butler states, in correspondence, that it has been 
reported only from Egypt. It has not been reported from Central 
America, Mexico, or Canada. 
According to Johnson (15), it was first reported in the United States in 
1909 in California, West Virginia, New York, and Georgia. Later it was 
found widely distributed in Virginia, which State has since been found to 
contain the chief area of infestation. At present there are no indications 
of the disease in New York or California. Recent surveys have revealed 
. its presence in 53 counties in Virginia, 11 in West Virginia, 2 in North 
Carolina, 1 in South Carolina, and 1 in Georgia. Probably a wide and 
intensive survey would show a general spread of the trouble outward 
from the badly infested region in the western part of Virginia. 
The disease usually is found by the discovery of galls in the grain and 
screenings at the mills. However, it sometimes is difficult to determine 
the source of the gall-infested grain found in a mill. For example, galls 
found in a Maryland mill were later traced to wheat shipped in from 
Virginia. Gall-infested wheat in a mill in Ohio was found to have come 
from West Virginia. The report of the disease in New York likewise 
may have been the result of galls in wheat shipped in from an infested 
area in another State. 
ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE 
Some of the earlier European workers in Germany, Austria, and Eng¬ 
land mention the nematode disease as the cause of severe losses. Doubt¬ 
less these losses were due largely to ignorance concerning the nature of 
the disease and the methods for its control. At present its economic 
status in Europe is of minor importance, probably on account of im¬ 
proved farm practice, such as rotation of crops and the use of clean seed. 
During the recent war the disease became very severe in certain 
sections of the southeastern United States, owing to the lack of rotation 
incident to the intensive wheat-production program. It was found that 
wheat or rye grown on land infested by a nematode-diseased crop the 
previous year usually became severely infected and was greatly reduced 
in yield. In wheat the losses were sometimes as high as 50 per cent, and 
according to Byars (5) losses as high as 70 per cent have been reported. 
In certain cases rye was even more severely injured than wheat, one 
field in Virginia in 1919 being a total loss. In addition to the reduction 
in yield, according to Coleman and Regan (£), the quality and conse¬ 
quently the market value also are greatly reduced, owing to the presence 
of the galls in the grain. 
In order to determine the effect of the disease on rye, the following 
experiment was conducted in 1920. Seed of winter rye was mixed with 
an equal volume of galls from wheat and sown in plats on the Arlington 
Experiment Farm. At maturity the plants from both the inoculated 
and uninoculated plats were'pulled. Representative infected plants 
were selected from the inoculated plat and a similar lot of healthy plants 
was taken from the uninoculated plat. From the infected plants four 
lots of 100 culms each were cut off immediately above the crown. From 
