The Delawarean., 1900-07-14
REMEDY FOR
PEAR BLIGHT.
The Discouraging Affection Which
Appears Like Beast of Elements
SOMETHING CALLED FIRE BLIGHT.
The Disease Otherwise Known as
Fire Blight" Which Has
Made Unusual Rnva-
ges This Season.

Pear blight, popularity known as
"fire blight" is a disease which has
made unusual ravages during the pres
ent season, probably because of pre-
vaIling weather conditions. Heavy
rain fall, high temperature and humid
ity, at and following the blossoming
are conditions favorable to it's spread
The weather is not, however, the direct
cause of blight, but only a favoring
condition.
The blight is caused by a minute
germ, so small that it would take 15,-
900 of them arranged end to end to
measure an inch. These germs grow
in the tender parts of the tree; bios
SONS, buds, young shoots, leaves, fruit
and the inner bark of the smaller and
larger limbs.
The existence of the disease is mark
ed by browning and later blacken-
ing of the parts More commonly we
note black terminal shoots bearing
clusters of jet black leaves. From
these terminal growths the blight ex-
tends downward to the larger branches
and limbs. Also from the branches
and larger trunks we may note one or
many short spurs an inch or two in
length which are similarly affected
From these the disease may extend
into the tree, often attacking the larg-
est limbs. 1t is the entrance of the
disease through these short leaf or
fruit spurs simultaneously at a large
number of points, which causes a tree
to suddenly succumb to the fire blight.
Fruit growers frequently observe a
line of blight extending across an or
chard appearing 50 suddenly as to
convince many that the fire blight is
caused by a sudden blast of the ele-
ments. The fact is that the trees are
already affected at a number of points,
although they may show no gross man
ifestations of the trouble, until SER
les of thunder storms with interven-
ing hot humid weather causes a Wig
orous multiplication of the germs
within the tissues of the tree, and the
blight with all its dire manifestations
appears like the thief in the night, to
alarm and confound us.
Remember that the spread of fire
blight is a perfectly natural process,
and there is no mystery connected with
it, although there is something yet to
be learned as to all its modes of en-
trance into the parts of the tree.
In the nectar of blossoms which have
sprung from the bighted limbs the
germs of fire blight have been
found. When these blossoms are Wis
fed by insects. the bodies of the latter
become contaminated by the. germs
which are then carried to the other
healthy flowers Hence bees and other
insects become the most active agents
in the spreading fire blight.
The blight may also find entrance
through leaf buds, tender, shoots,
leaves and fruit. by the puncture of in
sects whose mouth parts are contam-
mated with germs. Thus the agents of
infection are multifold and persistent
and while the blossoming period is the
one when the maximum infection oc-
ours, there is no time during the grow
ing season when some part of tree
may not become infected. Rapid sue
culent growth is very susceptible to
blight, hence to force the growth of
. pear trees by undue cultivation, or by
the use of nitrogenous fertilizers simp-
ly opens them to greater opportunities
for infection. There is little doubt but