It is the year of peak apple production for Lynd Fruit Farm Inc. at 240,000 bushels. The consequential losses were enormous. This gene transfer from an animal to a plant enabled the tree to develop its own fireblight resistance and trees made from buds or graft wood from this tree also had blight resistance. Bio-tech as demonstrated could save the apple industry and consumers millions of dollars. Agricultualists are charmed.
Naturalists are alarmed.
The world's first large scale commercial planting of naturally disease resistant apples is planted at Lynd Fruit Farm , on Morse Rd., Pataskala, Ohio. It is the first large scale application of the breeding program begun early in this century at the University of Ill. Agriculturalists and naturalists applaud . The neighbors across the road are disappointed. Mitch Lynd and co-founder Ed Fackler start the Mid West Apple Improvement Association.