David H. Teem
Oat, wheat, barley, and rye varieties were tested during the 1973-74 season by the Auburn University Agricultural Experiment Station at 13 locations in the State. Tests were conducted to furnish information on the relative performance of varieties and not as an absolute measure of the yielding potential of a variety in an area of the State. The low grain yields this season were primarily due to the combination of a mild winter and diseases, This is the third consecutive season that yields of small grain have been low in the tests. Although several diseases were damaging, the most severe were leaf rust and stem rust of wheat, crown rust of oats, and Sptoria glume blotch of wheat. Septoria glume blotch continues to be the most consistently damaging disease on wheat in Alabama. Hessian fly was observed in several tests but was not as damaging as during the 1972-73 season.
