The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1894-05-18
Mason County Orchards.

Sn0lCOn, mason county, carry III JuHo,
at which time it is more than proba-
BILE that county horticultural society
will be organized. The people of that
county are waking up on the fruit
question, and considerably more than
ordinary attention is being paid to
this growing, important and profitable
industry. Many new homes are being
established and old ranches improved.
Many thousand trees will be set in the
county the present year, majority OF
which will be apples. Big, red, winter
and bookkeeping varieties are being
selected. The people are ordering a
great portion of their trees from our
own state nurseries, and by so doing
get better stock and trees that are &C
climated. Stock grown here can also
be delivered in much better condition
and is more sure to grow and do well.
Trees raised here are healthier, live
and continue in bearing longer and
are more productive than trees inn
ported from the east. Too many east
ern trees, when transplanted Oh the
coast, live and fruit only few years,
turn black-hearted and die. Beside
being better in every other respect,
frst-class state-grown stock can be
bought for from one-half to one-third
cheaper than stock brought here.
5000 miles from the east. We are in
debted to imported eastern trees for the
presence of the most destructive pests
and diseases found in many of our
orchards today. We must have more
effective quarantine laws or else we
will soon be oyerrun by the pest-infect-
ed and diseased trees that are being
brought to this state from eastern nur-
series more and more every year. In
several eastern states many large and
valuable orchards have been wholly
destroyed of late by pests and disease.
In western New York state large APP
pie orchards are now being chopped
down and the trees burned on this &C
count, and the ground devoted to
other and more profitable purposes. In
Maryland and Delaware extensive
peach orchards have been entirely de-
stroyed by the peach yellows..
We have:one of the best fruit states
in the union, and we should spare
neither time nor money to prevent
these destructive scourges from gain
a foothold here. Now is the time to
act. If present statutes are not suffi-
Gent to meet the emergency, let our
coming session of the legislature enact
such laws as will afford us the most
complete protection. California is up
in arms against the importation of
of eastern trees into that state. From
the last report of the Oregon state
board of horticulture we learn that
w. E. Collins, secretary of the county
board of horticultural commission OF
San Rerna: dino county, CAL, wrote to
the president Of the Oregon board as
follows:
"You are doubtless aware that Cali
fornla has been waging an active war
fare against the introduction of the
peach yellows. Our legislature, at it's
last session, passed an act empowering
the state quarantine officer and the
county horticultural commissioners
to quarntine against diseases and in
sects. We have had one active season
and barred thousands of trees; car
after car has been held and destroyed
or returned. and many were not start
ed ON their journey by orders being
countermanded. We realize that next
season your markets will be glutted
with eastern trees and an attempt or
series of attempts will be made to ship
III here as Oregon grown. We have
always admitted trees from Oregon as
those grown in different parts of Cali
fornia, in some instances more freely.
But there is a feeling growing daily
stronger that unless your state takes
active measures to protect yourselves
against eastern trees, in self-defense,
we will have, in California to take
precautionary measures against east
ern trees coming by way of your state
You are dobtless aware of the extent
OF country now devastated by the yell
lows and rosett. (See DIR. Smiths re-
port and bulletin issued by the agri
cultural department, Washington,
wherein he says our only safety lies in
growing our own trees.( If either or
both these deadly diseases once obtain
a foothold on this coast, it ..is only a
question of time when our peach.
plum, prune, almond and nectarine.
and other frnit trees on peach or plum