Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1891-07-30
The YeIlows Is Overspread-
Ing the Peninsula.
THE FRUIT IS BADLY BLIGHTED
Permanent Damage to the
Orchards is Feared.


fruited orchards, there now stand blighted
prospects and thousands Of baskets of
blighted fruit It is impossible to trace
exactly the first appearance Of the yellows
In Kent, but it has certainly fingered in
our peach districts for number Of years,
and now comes with terrific oarnestness.
Wishing to ascertain the real situation and
form an idea of the extent of the reported
destruction Of orchards and fruit, your
correspondent has personally visited all Of
the great peach sections of the county and
found the reports but little, il at all, exag-
gerated.
Much Of the information received was
directly from the growers themselves or
from unquestioned authority. Then two
orchards were visited representing many
thousands Of the one million and a-half
trees in the county.
At Crumpton, the orchard of Alvary
Clements, which until a week ago was
without sign Of the dreaded disease, is
now infested, and the yellows is increasing
to AN alarming extent. Samuel Coppages
trees are blighted, and many baskets Of
premature fruit marks the path of the
disease. Sparks and Riland had cut out
100 trees on the day before our visit and
were still cutting out Fruit which should
ripen month hence Is ripening prena-
tnrely or whitening. Clay Stevens orchard
has been ruined.
Biggs' (of Delawarc) farms, took out 800
trees last year, and the disease is increas-
ing.
Millington is the great peach centre of
the county, and with its estimated crop
for tho vicinity Of $4,000 baskets, was set
down as the largest point Of shipment on
the Peninsula. This section is apparently
fated to have its vast acres of orchards
completely blotted out of existence.
Edward Spear an extensive peach-grower,
stated that until within a few weeks ago
his orchard was comparatively clear, but
as the varities have come on the disease
has developed. lie SAID that possibly in q
majority OF the partially affected orchards
the spread Of the blight will continue
throughout the season. Henry Spear SAYS
that IN his orchard of 1000 trees the crop
Will he severely cut. Prematuring COM
menced about three weeks ago. and about
$40 trees of Old Nixon and Mount Rose
have all prematured, and about one-haf
Of his Troths. In his old orchard he will
lose between 500 and 1000 baskets, and if
the prematnring continues, it will be i'm
possible TO forecast tho loss in fruit and
frees. Mr.. Barnes stated that every one of
Ills varieties We're prematuring
In G. o. Cocy's orchard hundreds of bas-
kets of peaches which, few weeks ago,
promised u profitable harvest, were wither-
and falling to the ground, worthless. John
Bailey will have 1000 baskets of premature
fruit. In the orchard of Samuel Hurlock
it was but little, If any better. Thomas
Dunn will loose fully one-third of his crop.
J. X. Stafford has many trees breaking
down with premature fruit. The orchard
of Mrs. Taylor is also seriously injured.
Many orchards in the vicinity, not named
and, indeed with scarce an exception, each
and every one is, to a greater or less extent
affected BY the fearful blight. II was est. .
fru has fI..
shipments of fruit from Millington station
alone will he cut short 100000 baskets.
Double Creek, which has developed into
an important peach-growing section, lying
along Chester river, in the upper section
of Queen Anne's, is but slightly affected.
Nassey's, though not as extensive peach
growing section as Mllington, is not clear
of the scourge which is waging such de-
struction in the orchards of the adjacent
districts Clarence llurlock, 500 prematur.
ing trees, and some other orchards are
more or less injured
Galena is directly in the path of the de-
stroyinE disease in its advance down the
Peninsula. James 7. Pennington has an
orchard which has been almost swept out
of existence, and will be taken lip this fall.
III II beautiful threey year-old orchard,
which IS, to all appearances, perfectly
healthy, the trees are heavily laden with
prematuring and worthless fruit. Corne-
hus j. Scott has handsome orchard in
which the yellows is developing to an
alarming degree. The extensive peach in
terests of Captain Andrew WOodal of
Georgetown have been severely cut. Mr..
Hayes, of Georgetown, showed us Il five
year-old orchard from which he has
never realized a dollar, and which is now
total wreck. From an estimated crop of
$500 baskets he may possibly get 800.
Joseph Dixon's orchard Of 10000 prs
tod R.1t ltf -
looked as though fire had SWEPT over the
trees. Fully onehalf the trees have been
killed. Acres of trees have been cut out,
and acres more are ready Tor the axe,
Richard Lockwood is reported to have
picked fruit two weeks ago which should
have rpened about the last of August.
The orchards Of r. lIyland Taylor, Eugene
flooding, Henry Gray Samuel Todd and
many others are more or less seriously
damaged. In the vicinity of Locust Grove
the prospect is but little better. J. W.
HURT has been a sufferer from the yellows
for many years and has taken out many
trees and has many more to be dug up,
+, j, Shallcross dug up his entire orchard
Two years ago. The crop III the orchard
of Mrs. w. ]. Shallcross, which was ut
flrst put at 1000 baskets, is now put up at
2OO. The orchard is under the treatment
Of Prof. Smith of the department at
Washington, ID. O., for yellows. Robert
Comiy's orchard. is fearfully blighted, and
he Will have no fruit. George W. Atwells
trees are completely destroyed
In the vicinity of Blacks Station the
destruction of the great peach interest is
marked on every farm. John Comegys
has already taken ont 80 trees and has ID
more to come out. W. @. Crows orchard
has scarcely good tree left. In the beauti-
full orchards of Garrett FoXwel and Den
mis- j. Nowland the ravage of the disease
has been widespread and complete. In
Still Pond Neck, II great pcach-growing
district J. 7. GreenwOod's orchard of 1000
will scarcely have one-tenth of Il crop,
and his orchard is completely DESTROYED
Mr. Meeks and James H. Harris, large fruit
growers, also have the yelows One-third
of the crop in James I. Irelands orchard
of 1000 or 5000 trees, is total loss. u. c.
Grow, at the head of Still Pond Neck, will
take up three of his five orchards.
In the lower part of the county the vel
lows has not as yet appeared But few of
the trees are marked by the general char
acteristics of the yellows-tufts of narrow
leaves and sprouts OH the limbs and body
of the trees and the yellow foliage In
many cases the trees are as green as a leek,
and but for shriviled and prematuring
fruit no signs of the disease could be seen.
On some trees a dozen or more luscious
looking peaches may be seen, while the
fruit on the greater portion Of the tree is Of
normal size and perfect. In some cases
one limb, half the tree, or, possibly, nearly
all the fruit is, apparently, ripe, while the
remMnder Is green and insipid. The cases
famed are only some of the many who