Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1905-07-05
FIRE BLIGHT.
Its Cause and Remedies to be Applied.

The Kansas Farmer of June 22nd
contains the following article on
Fire Blight" in fruit trees, by K.
Elizabeth Sweet in the Kansas Ag-
ricultural Review, which is valua-
BILE to every fruit grower in the
state:
"Fire blight is bacterial dis
ease affecting the pomaceous fruits,
especially the pear and apple, for
which reason it is sometimes call
ed the ''pear and apple blight"
This name is easily confused with
the pear leaf blight" a distinctly
different disease, so should not be
used. The fire blight is caused by
myriads of minute organisms, "Mi-
crocur Amylovorus," living in the
bark and the cambium just beneath
it. The disease has been known
for over hundred years, but its
true cause has been known only
since 1873 when it was discovered
by Prof. Burrill of Illinois. The
blight affects the tree in various
ways and is hence known as "twig
blight" ''flower blight" and
branch or trunk blight" accord
ing to the part of the tree affected.
''The twig blight causes the
leaves to turn brown and the small
er twigs to die. The dead leaves
remain on the tree during the fol-
lowing winter, giving the tree the
appearance of having been scorch-
ed. The organisms generally enter
the twigs through the growing tips.
In the flower blight the flowers are
infected through their stigma and
nectar glands and, with the unde-
veloped fruit, remain on the tree
through the winter. The trunk
blight is more COMMON in the pear
than in the apple and causes whole
limbs to turn brown. The young
er growth is affected first and brown
spots appear on the bark. Later it
is found to have tiny drops of sap
exudlng all over the diseased area
and the disease spreads to the larg-
er limbs. The eXuded sap is alive
with the organisms which produce
the disease. 1t is easy to see from
this, one means of dissemination.
Bees and other insects feed on this
sap and carry away the bacteria
clinging to their mouth parts.
These are forced into a healthy
flower and the organisms left there
to cause flower blight. 1t has been
proved that fire blight is found
more frequently around beehives
than in portions of the orchard re-
mote from them, thus giving prac-
tical evidence in proof of this the
ory of dissemination.
Another means of dissemination
is supposed to be high winds. One
of the most easily avoided modes
of injection is that of the pruning
instrument. Cutting through dis
eased and then through healthy it's
sue without sterilizing the instru-
ment after the first cutting carries
the germ into the tissue of the sec
ond limb. After cutting through
diseased tissue the instrument
should be sterilized by passing
through flame, wiping with a
cloth saturated with kerosene, i'm
mersed in a S per cent solution of
acid or otherwise thor
oughly disinfected.
Since the cause of the disease is
below the outer coat of bark, spray
ing is useless as a preventive or
remedy. Careful and persistent
pruning is. the only means found
effective in combating this pest.
All affected parts should be cut off
just before the trees come in bloom.
Some of the authorities strongly
recommend painting the cut ends
of.the limbs where the vascular
bundles are exposed as the germs
can enter and infect the trees
through any wound in the bark. In
case of twig and flower blight,
which occurs most frequently in
the apple, this painting is not prac-
ticable but in the pear where it is
most frequently the larger limbs
that are affected, this may be prac-
ticed. The diseased tissue should
be cut away several inches below
all discoloration as the disease
spreads down the branches and the
may be present in ap-
parently healthy tissue. The sec
ond pruning should be done about
two weeks after blooming, by
which time the affected flowers will
have turned brown. The trees
should be examined third time
iuSf before, fhe 1aoxoc dror - xtn