Show INJURY BY SCAB IN MANY STATES investigations in progress to learn more about serious diseases of wheat NO satisfactory CONTROL best obtainable seed should be used and thoroughly cleaned and treated by formaldehyde method clean up waste places prepared Prep ired by the united states department of agriculture investigations are in progress by tha united states department of agriculture in operation cooperation co with a number of state experiment stations and ual farmers to leam more about wheat scab and methods of controlling it no entirely satisfactory control of this disease has been developed because the acab fungi develop on so many different kinds of grains and grasses and on cornstalks corn stalks stubble straw and other trash two things however are regarded as important first the best wheat obtainable should be used for seed this should be thor hughly cleaned and treated by the for malde hyde method recommended tor the prevention of smut second this wheat should be sown on thoroughly plowed land land where the old corn stalks wheat stubble and grass have been entirely plowed under this can be accomplished by use of a drag chain all grass and straw should be burned or otherwise other wisa removed from hedges fence rows fence corners and nearby waste places these waste places should be either plowed or fumed off wheat scab takes heavy toll winter wheat everywhere east of the great plains was heavily infected with scab this year spring wheat also suffered greatly and many spring wheat fields were left uncut duo chiefly to the ravages of scab the suffering the greatest losses ot both spring and winter wheat include missouri iowa south dakota minnesota WIs consla michigan illinois indiana ohio pennsylvania maryland virginia west north carolina kentucky and tennessee this disease of wheat Is caused by several different fungi which attack tho crop at various stages of develop men the seedlings are blighted the roots rotted and the plants weakened to such an extent that they are winter killed the heads are blighted the parts die and present the formation of well filled kernels the bead blight Is the most evident and in most cotses causes the most damage heat A group of healthy grain on left compared with a group of badly infected on right brwn fields with only a moderate scab infection Is light in weight and there forr grades as no 3 or lower the fanner then not only loses from a re in yield but from a lowering of the grade as well scab fungus attacks corn 0 those angl known to cause scab la wheat the most important one also attacks corn one of the ways it elvei over winter Is n the decaying corn stalks left on the ground in the fields Is often sown on the corn land with these cornstalks corn stalks left on the sup face the following season the fungus spreads from the infected cornstalks corn stalks to the wheat beads and causes blight inc in addition to wheat and corn the disease attacks rye oats barley and many grasses the scab fungi also ih e over winter on the infected stubble and decaying straw left on top of the ground and on infected grass stems left around the edges of the field these fungi spread from this material to the next seasons crop prevent winter killing it Is a common practice in some sections of the winter wheat belt to spread straw on the winter wheat after the ground Is frozen in order to hold the snow clean straw from win ter wheat spread on the fields late in the winter after the ground Is frozen Is not dangerous in spreading scab to the next year a crop this straw holds the snow and moisture and prevents the plants from being broken by the wind when plowed under the next summer it adds humus to the soil turn ta stock into the straw piles from the badly diseased wheat and spread the manure on the ground the following year such straw should never be spread on the fields for it Is sure to carry scab into next years crop |