The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-12-04
LESSONS or THE FROST.
Louisiana Orange Growers Learn How to
Protect Their Trees In Cold Weather.

Protect Their Trees In Cold Weather.
New ORLEANS. Deo 3-The fruit OF the
Louisiana orange crop is beginning to reach
market. more than a month later than usual
That there should be any crop Is o surprise
because II was the unanimous sentiment oil
orange growers last year that tho severe wea-
Their had killed every sweet orange tree In the
State. A few hardy Japanese oranges survived
but all the sweet varieties persisted. This was
partments. State and national. and verified By
subsequent examinations.
trees a we're Rilied"but due almost wholly 10
carelessness--and the rest remained In a state
OF suspended animation. to revive with warmer
but no smaller than after previous freszcs. and
many OF the orange growers believe that the
TO toll the Industry By showing them what Kind
OF oranges gss to TO grow and howl to protect them
The grange industry OF Louisiana Is nearly
two centuries old. and nearly that much older
than the Florida and Ca!iio orange farms
but Il has no, until lately been conducted on a
lect to many collapses aud shocks. In the old
Creole days any temperature under "a degrees
Killed half their trees. The older trees sur
vived and thus Kept up orange growing. As
these cold spells came every score or so OF
years, the story OF the orange industry wns
a crushins blow which lndid all the WORK and
fresh When, however. regular orange farms
were started In PlaRuemine parish, the
necessity OF harder trees was recognized and
the experiment OF grating sweet oranges on
sturdy sour orange trees was tried. IL was a
complete sncc produced an, acid-sweet
orange which became popular. and enabled the
trees to stand far colder and more severe
the orange industry until 1881. when the tenn n,
pcrnturc want Town TO IL something that had
never been known in Louisiana for a century
The orange trees had been trained to stand -
and even ~ degrees but not IL. and many Of
The orange growers went to work to find hard
Ter trees and several Japanese varieties were
precautions to protect the trees from severely
cold weather. and announced that they were
come again, and. indse1. Tor far more se yeee
weather Then came the freeze OF last Febru-
airy. and temperature OF 81 degrees. not only
something that could not be even imagined.
II was believed to be fatal to the industry hut
oranss Il and
in Disguise, by. showing them what varieties
Of oranges best stand cold weather. and how
now demonstrated that with proper precau-
ton there Is no reason why zorro tenn peraturo
should kill q single orange tree. The mahdn-
rim, tangerln. salSunia. OOnshin and gum
quat. all japanese varieties. escaped injury
when properly looked after
, Tho loss OF the orange trees by the freeze
is now shown to be the result of negligence or
rather OF Ignorance, Many growers went to
M9H e hsm "HSS hG cS a sa% Gs
even dressed the trees In mating. All that Is
necessary TO protect the trees against the Sc
versst cold possible Is to hill the trees above
the bud. II zero weather comes along the cold
may XIII tho upper branches. hut the body OF
tree rema ms Intact and shoots ont It's branches
In the spring. The hills can then be removed.
the dead branches cut or. and the trees will
have fruit abundantly.
IL Is this experience which has revived tho
fallen hopes Of the orange growers OF Louisiana,
and which " u result in the laying out OF many
thousands OF orange trees this spring. rho
growers believe that thcy have solved the prohs
lem Of how to beat the freeze