The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, November 24, 1919, Page 12

§ i H i : ¢ i H Drive to Counteract W heat Disease Some of the Most Virulent Forms of Grain Ailments and Met_hqu of Combating Them Outlined by Agricultural Department Official BY SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT | ITH the shrinkage in wheat £| promise of 220,000,000 bushels during July as incentive, and with more funds available to carry on its work than ever be- fore, the cereal investigations office of the department of agri- termined drive to counteract the grain diseases now seriously threatening the nation’s crops. In-an interview specially authorized by Secre- tary Houston, Carlton R. Ball, chief of the cereal investigations office, which is now probably the most important subdivision of the bureau of plant industry, has pointed out for the Nonpartisan Leader the most important elements of the work now under way to check the ravages of wheat dis- eases. While other grains are in no way neg- lected, wheat is far and away the subject of" greatest attention at the present time. “Before the war the appropriations granted by . congress for the cereal investigations work aver- aged about $150,000 annually,” said Mr. Ball. “As a war measure the sum of $579,755, including $178,250 authorized by the food production act, was granted for the fiscal year ended July 1 last. For the current fiscal year congress has al- lotted $502,500 for this work, but the sum avail- able is in reality greater than last year, as most of the items included in the food production act, which did not pass until last fall, are on hand for this year’s work in cereal disease control. “The work being carried on by the cereal in- vestigations office in combating wheat diseases has two distinet divisions: (a) Destroying the sources of disease, and (b) the breeding of disease- resistant varieties. Slow and painstaking investi- gation is a necessary preliminary in both these lines, but the efforts of the corps of experts work- ing for the-department in collaboration with vari- ous state officials is beginning to achieve notable results. g “Wheat scab has alone caused a very large per- centage of the slump in anticipated promise, gen- erzl estimates so far checking this disease as re- sponsible for 40 to 50 per cent of the July decline. Scab, however, has proved most virulent in the corn-growing states and is not reported as partic- ularly serious in North Dakota. The department experts have been able to prove that wheat scab is caused by the same organism responsible for corn rot, explaining why it is prevalent in fields formerly grown with corn. EXPERIMENTS ON TREATING DISEASES IN SEEDS “Because infected seed is known to be an im- portant source of infection in wheat scab, experi- ments are under way to determine what treatment can best be applied to diseased seeds. Preliminary results indicate that the organisms causing the scab of wheat and rye are killed by dry-heat treatment at temperatures which do not materi- ally injure the cereal seeds. Experiments are also in progress with a treatment combining the use of dry heat and formaldehyde. As results applicable by the average farmer are obtained they will be made public through the farmers’ bulletins of the department of agriculture. A separate ap- propriation of from $25,000 to $50,000 will be asked by the department this year to carry on its scab prevention work. “Black stem rust, which during the epi- demic year of 1916 was the principal factor in ruining hundreds of North Dakota farmers and reducing wheat production in that state to less than 40,000,000 bushels, as against a yield of 150,000,000 bushels in 1915, has been- the subject of a very thorough investigation by department of agriculture experts this year. Already two types of commercial wheat, found to be highly resistant to black stem rust, have been developed in co-operation with the agriculture experiment stations of North " and South Dakota. - ' “These resistant wheats are kota and acme. Kota has been developed by selection of a mixture of Russian wheat. It is a hard, red, common, spring wheat, both early and productive, and apparently of very good milling quality. The department of agriculture will increase it for commercial grow- T e T B S LA culture has undertaken a de- . ing, and it will also be used as a basis for further breeding. “Acme is a variety of durum wheat, developed by selection from katanka in co-operation with the South Dakota experiment station. It is a high- yielding variety, with great resistance to black stem rust, and has already been introduced for commercial cultivation in South Dakota.” Another resistant has been developed at the _ North Dakota College of Agriculture by Doctor H. L. Bolley. It is known at D 5 wheat. “Far more important than the development of resistant varieties in the case of black stem rust, however, is the absolute eradication of the com- mon barberry, without which the rust is practically powerless to spread to grains,” Mr. Ball continued. “The department of agriculture is now carrying on an active barberry eradication campaign in 13 north central states—Colorado, Iowa, Illinois, In- diana, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Ohio, Wisconsin and Wyoming. In all of these except Indiana, Ohio and Wyoming state laws have been enacted requir- ing the removal of the common barberry.” While millions of bushes of the common bar- berry have already been destroyed as a result of the department of agriculture campaign, this dis- ease carrier is still abundant in many sections. In The center picture shows a sound head of normal wheat. On either side are diseased heads. In this case the trouble is due to eel-worm disease. This disease not only reduces the yield but lowers the milling value of the grain. Methods of combating it are given in Farmers’ Bulletin 1041, United States department of agriculture. Nebraska this year, up to-May 30, for instance, department agents had marked -down and elim- inated 63,000 separate bushes. That no serious outbreak of black stem rust -has occurred this year is largely attributed by Doctor Ball to the vigorous barberry eradication campaign._ Many amusing stories of unusual obstacles en- countered by the federal agents in this work are related by E. C. Stakman, formerly in charge of the barberry eradication work of the department. They range from the unleashing of savage dogs on . the'agents by farmers’ wives to the arrest and de- tention of the men on such charges as automobile thefts and murder by overzealous deputies. Com- ing ‘into rural districts as strangers and being forced to trespass in their work the agents of the department are frequently regarded as “suspects” for any crime which has occurred in the community during the past year. Mr. Stakman points out the serious side of this, in hamperfing the prosecu- tion of very essential work, and asks that closer co-operation with the federal agentslbe henceforth worked out in the campaign. ~ z “Leaf rust is found by the department to be a factor of far greater importance in limiting grain production than has hitherto been supposed,” Mr. Ball went on. “Leaf rusts overwinter, but are PAGE TWELVE found to be highly epidemic only in states growing winter wheats extensively. , “Take-all and flag smut are destructive wheat diseases long common to Australia, which first broke out in this country in Madison county, IlL, last April. Prompt action by the office of cereal investigations has resulted in boxing' both these - diseases in certain areas in Illinois and Indiana. Immediately on hearing Bf ‘the outbreak the de- partment of agriculture called a conference of its pathologists with those of the wheat-producing states in order to become familiar with the dis- eases and work out treatments. Quarantine areas were established and control measures effected by the federal officials. DANGER OF EEL-WORM SPREADING TO WEST . “Eel-worm disease has caused considerable local damage to wheat .crops in many eastern states, and there is said to be grave danger of its spread- ing to the wheat states of the West and Northwest. It is suspected that this disease is already preva- lent in western sections, but has been either over- looked or mistaken for bunt, cockle seed or bin- burnt wheat. Because the nematodes causing the disease lie over winter in the soil the department experts advise that land on' which nematode-in- fected wheat has been grown should be planted with other crops for three years in order to starve out the disease. Any other crop may be used in the rotation, as only wheat is known to be seri- ously attacked by eel-worm disease. “Methods of cembating the eel-worm disease have been fully worked out by the department. To escape infection fields must be sown with seed wheat free from nematodes. A simple means of easy application is the so-called salt-brine method. In a 20 to 25 per cent salt solution, made by dis- solving 40 pounds of common salt in 25 gallons of water, sound wheat kernels will sink, while nema- tode galls, light kernels and trash will float and should be removed. Scientific experiments show conclusively that sowing wheat seed containing nematode galls results in heavily infected crops, as also will the sowing of clean seed wheat in in- fected soil. Clean seed on clean land gives a clean crop, even though adjacent to infested fields.” Smuts, whether loose or bunt, have caused con- siderable loss in the northwestern wheat fields, and it is estimated that the former, though less serious in wheat, alone caused a loss of 25,500,000 bushels in the wheat crop of 1918. During the last congress the Nonpartisan representatives were instrumental in putting through a $50,000 item for the investigation and study of smut diseases and much is now being done in this line. Experiments carried out this year indicate that strains of hard red winter (Crimean) wheats are very resistant to bunt or stinking smut and promise is held out by Doctor Ball for the development of com- mercial varieties that are highly bunt-resist- ant. The department pathologists are now endeavor- ing to work out seed treatments for smut which will be readily applicable by the average farmer. Formaldehyde treatment is useless, as the smut is inside. Hot water treatments give . splendid laboratory results, but must be carefully handled, as too low temperature will not kill the smgt and too high temperature will ruin the seed. “Stripe rust is probably most dangerous to wheat of the few minor diseases not yet discussed,” Mr. Ball stated, “but this ailment, though first discovered in the United States in 1892, has never been found east of 103 degrees longitude. Com- paratively little is known as to this disease. No alternative host has been discovered for it, as the common barberry for black rust, and all evidence indicates that the rust overwinters. Many thou- sand experiments prove that neither stripe rust or black rust infect through rusted seed. “It is felt that the whole question of treating diseases on a commercial basis is one for the indi- vidual state legislatures. . Wherever community seed treatment centers are established, where the farmers can bring their seed and have. it treated competently and in standard ways, the department of agriculture, through its county agents and sci- ef;;:llfi::’ experts, is willing to give all assistance pos- sible. ; 2 2 O R AT S e